Throwback Thursday: IBM's Watson App: Virtual Agent in Your Pocket?

       I wanted to share some fascinating (old and new) information about IBM's Watson, the supercomputer designed to challenge all-time Jeopardy champions back in 2011. When Watson first emerged on Jeopardy, every one was going crazy that there was a machine that could beat human beings on a QUIZ show. Even though Watson was not the first artificial intelligence created, he sure opened people's eyes to the progress and the potential of Artificial Intelligence (AI). To read more about the press release, check out "Virtual Agent Technology to make Mainstream Media Debut in the Form of an IBM Supercomputer."

       I brought up the debut of Watson because he seems to be making a reappearance and is heading straight for your smartphone. The same technology that was "trained on Jeopardy, is headed for your pocket." IBM is finally releasing a product using the technology of Watson, as a customer service agent, working similarly to a virtual agent. In this version of Watson, he searches the web for solutions instead of pulling information from a knowledge platform.

      An "Ask Watson" button will appear on websites and mobile phone applications. This will enable users to ask questions and receive answers instantly with his matured intelligence. This "Ask Watson" button is also capable of using a voice recognition software, making it a more knowledgeable version of Apple's Siri. noHold thinks that this is great news for the Virtual Agent industry. What is your opinion? Is Watson going to be a competitor in the web based Virtual Agent/Virtual Assistant space or do you see Watson as a strategic partner for Virtual Agent/Virtual Assistant providers? We would love you hear your thoughts on Watson and how he might effect today's Virtual Agent industry.

   
     Cheers!



Source: Trained on Jeopardy, Watson is Headed For Your Pocket via MIT Technology Review

Throwback Thursday: Paving the Way for Siri

Happy Throwback Thursday!

     

     For this weeks Throwback Thursday, I wanted to shed a little bit of  light on the Virtual Agent industry...before there was even a name for this space! When Siri was still a far off, almost crazy idea and before IBM's Watson was able to be the winner of America's favorite QuizShow Jeopardy, Virtual Agents had already been on the market. noHold has been creating Virtual Agents since 1999 and saw a great deal of publicity in 2001 with the demand for these Artificial Intelligences only increasing. Back in 2001 as well, leading analyst firms did not know what to call such an industry. People were referring to Virtual Agents as self-service solutions, interactive knowledge platforms, service bots, etc. Whatever you wanted to call them, Virtual Agents were making their way to the spot light in the eyes of large PC manufacturers, saving them hundreds of thousands of dollars in a short period of time on customer support. Check out the article to the left which states that in 2001, a Fortune 500 company saved $290,000 in less than 4 months during a pilot program using InstantSupport powered by noHold.

     With the advancement of technology, innovators are always finding ways to create the latest trends that can do pretty much anything you would ever want. But without Virtual Agents or Artificial Intelligence paving the way, there might never have been the creation of Siri or Watson. Being able to learn from the past is a powerful ability and is where most great ideas stem from. "The past is never where you think you left it." -Katherine Anne Porter

Cheers.