Introductory talk on why chatbots are attracting developers and the current state of this nascent segment.

1. Chatbot is not a product,
it’s a feature
December 2016
Michael Vakulenko 1

2. H1 2016: Chatbots are the new apps?
Michael Vakulenko 2

3. Lots of excitement in the Valley…
Michael Vakulenko
Source: Botness,
https://medium.com/botness/learnings-from-the-first-botness-survey-dbeba3f89fbc
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4. but, also lots of false starts...
Michael Vakulenko 4

5. some chatbots were not exactly clever…
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6. … and some ideas are not exactly useful
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7. Not everybody is convinced
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8. So, why chatbots?
Michael Vakulenko 8

9. Opportunities in mobile apps dry up,
companies look for new ways to
reach and engage mobile users
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10. Mobile-first UI replaces complex forms
on small smartphone screens
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11. Familiar thread-centric UI paradigm
allows to simplify complex flows
Michael Vakulenko
Source: https://blog.intercom.com/killer-feature-messaging-no-ones-talking/
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12. No front-end software* resulting in
cost-effective cross-platform development
Michael Vakulenko
* for those who decide to develop for messaging platforms
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13. Chatbot UI is deceptively simple,
but UX is surprisingly hard
Michael Vakulenko
More on chatbot UX from Marry Mariansky
https://medium.com/@mmatty
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14. Chatbots are past the hype phase
Michael Vakulenko
Source: Sam Lessin,
https://www.theinformation.com/bots-in-2016-mid-year-check-in
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15. Tens of thousands developers
work on various use cases
using different design approaches
Assistants
E-commerce
Customer support
Data analysis
Utilities
Customer interaction
Business workflow
Data collection
Content delivery
Entertainment
Games
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16. Dedicated app or messaging platform?
Things to consider: User ownership vs. user reach; privacy; UI limitations
Michael Vakulenko
Skyscanner on
Facebook Messenger Lemonade App
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17. Which messaging platform?
Michael Vakulenko
US or maximum
global reach
Market
?
Geo
?
Regional
reach
Consumer Enterprise
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18. Fully automated or hybrid?
Things to consider: AI is not ready yet for complex general-purpose bots
Michael Vakulenko
Fully Automated
Meekan scheduling assistant
Hybrid
Lola travel app
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19. Do-it-yourself AI or 3rd party engine?
Michael Vakulenko
Things to consider: API constraints; data ownership; performance;
roadmap dependencies, see https://www.developereconomics.com/nlp-wit-luis-api-ai
wit.ai Bot Framework Watson Lexi
+ numerous startups….
api.ai
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20. Michael Vakulenko
New user behaviors take time to develop and
sometimes require a breakthrough app to get
things started. That’s where we are with chatbots.
The hype phase is over and we are now into the
figuring it out phase. That’s usually when
interesting stuff starts to happen.
“ Fred Wilson, USV
http://avc.com/2016/08/checking-in-on-chat-bots/
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21. Let’s talk!
@mvakulenko
Michael Vakulenko 21