What is a Chatbot?

Chatbots are available on websites, messaging apps, SMS, WhatsApp, customer service portals and many other digital channels.

Not all chatbots use artificial intelligence (AI). Traditional chatbots follow predefined rules, decision trees and scripted conversation flows. AI chatbots use technologies such as natural language processing (NLP), generative AI and large language models (LLMs) to understand user intent, generate more natural responses and adapt to a wider range of conversations.

Traditional chatbots work well for predictable requests but struggle with questions that fall outside their programmed responses.Today’s AI chatbots can do much more than provide answers. Many connect with business applications, databases and knowledge bases so they can retrieve information, complete transactions or guide users through a process. They can also support human agents by resolving routine requests and transferring more complex conversations to a human when more assistance is needed.

Organizations use chatbots to support customers, employees and partners across industries. They can help with customer service, sales, technical support, internal knowledge sharing, appointment scheduling and many other everyday tasks.

While every chatbot has different capabilities, the goal is the same: to make it easier for people to get information and accomplish tasks through human conversation instead of navigating menus or searching through content.