March Madness as Chatbots Move up the Tech Agenda
March was a busy month for chatbot deployments and with crazy technology news in general. No amount of positive stories can get away from the use of Facebook data for political shenanigans, and the wider implications for technology companies and businesses that use these services.
Facebooking up to the Truth
UPDATE: Facebook has temporarily stopped new bots from being added to the Messenger service while it changes its API to improve privacy.
One key point of concern is what happens to data from chatbot conversations on Facebook Messenger, home to so many brand chatbots. As Time Magazine asked last year, “Are Your Facebook Messages Really Private? Here’s the Truth” the answer depends on the user’s settings.
When it comes to chatbots by and large the systems in place seem to be secure to protect user data and maintain records only as long as needed. Information Age looked at chatbot security and risk from hackers in a recent piece. End-to-end encryption protects the messages, while strict rules like the new GDPR regulations will help improve the situation, and limit what data companies can keep, with sizeable fines for violators.
Even so, chatbots can’t hold out forever, and at some point, a bot will be compromised and data hacked or misused, particularly for bots in the medical or legal sector where a little bit of personal information could be highly damaging.
Still, with Facebook bringing Messenger to business websites, people may still have qualms about using it, especially as Bots take over a growing number of customer interactions. So, Facebook has a major PR job on its hands. As for providers, Services like SnatchBot say it takes privacy and data protection very seriously, training staff for the new GDPR regulations, commenting ”We are well aware of the new regulations and intend to meet the data privacy requirements ahead of the May 2018 deadline.”
Insurance Firms Ensuring Chatbots Perform Well
All that said, there is nothing stopping the rise of chatbots across many markets. Insurers seems to be the latest industry jumping on the wagon, with a salient piece from Claims Journal on “Minimizing the Risk and Maximizing Reward” from the technology.
In the marketplace, giant Zurich UK is one of the latest to deploy an AI chatbot for consumers to help manage claims. Launching a six-week trial for home and motor claim, Zara is the first line of contact ahead of human agents. Check back to see how the trial went and if Zurich plans to roll it out further. The company notes that “The move to use robotics shouldn’t necessarily be viewed as a hindrance. New and innovative technologies will help customers, but also empower us to redeploy people so they can develop new skill sets beyond traditional career paths.”
Chatbots in the Movies
For now Hollywood seems obsessed with marketing movies by using AR and other mobile gimmicks. For example, check out Dwayne Johnson’s monsters from Rampage in augmented action. But it can’t be long before chatbots take to the scene, and Bollywood is leading the way with an impressive effort for action flick Baaghi 2.
According to local reports, The Baaghi 2 promotional material gives out a mobile number that users are invited to call on, after which they get an SMS link that takes them to the chatbot hosted on Facebook Messenger where there are quizzes, songs, dialogue promos and other engagement options.
Until a film gets in on the action, we’re hoping a “War Games”-style “do you want to play chess?” climactic sequence, there are still plenty of theatre chains and review sites launching chatbots. These help people find a movie and book seats, but how cool would it be to chat to the AI from a movie, if they ever remake Knight Rider, Short Circuit or another film with a smart bot to engage with.
