"there's a bot for that!" - the world of conversational uis and chat bots
TRANSCRIPT
Getting to Know the World of Conversational UI
There’s a bot for that!
Setting the Context
Quiz Time
Quiz Time
Quiz Time
Quiz Time
Chat is eating everything else for breakfast!
The most important question: WHY?It’s an exciting time to be alive… we’re witnessing a paradigm shift again
Our device screens are overflowing with app
iconsApps living in silos of
their own are no longer tolerable
Jumping from one app to another is so not
coolAll apps are not
born equal
Consolidation
Invisible Apps
“Just enough UI or no UI is the new
UI”
App / Notification / OS
Alienation: We’re beginning to miss human(-like)
interactions
Time spent in messaging apps now far exceeds
that in social media apps
Human Evolution: Learnt behaviour Innate behaviour
What
Also known as “Artificial Conversational Entity”, its
designed to enable users to accomplish complex tasks through
natural dialogue
Understanding Conversational Interfaces
When
1. … instantly reachable, almost hiding in plain sight – no need to be downloaded, they live on servers, not a user’s device. This means using bots should provide a smoother experience for the user as switching between bots doesn’t involve tapping on another app.
2. … a trusted relationship helps (bot = my friend)3. … the objective is to accomplish a singular task but too many options available
(ask directly)4. … data entry is easy but processing and analysis is burdensome (offload analysis
to server)5. … the traditional screen interface is too complicated or small (GUI is not always
the answer)6. … a request does not have to be completed immediately (asynchronous + small
talk)7. … context switching if required needs to be easy and not jarring (bot to human
hand-off)8. … user is interacting with multiple byte-sized, micro- and in-the-moment
experiences (switching contexts not apps)9. … user does not enjoy browsing or deal with subjectivity (most shopaholics may
hate bots)
Understanding Conversational Interfaces
How
1.Rich text-based interfaces (limited to text and emoji’s only)
2.Text interspersed with GUIs (most commonly adopted by known bots)
3.Voice-based interfaces (think virtual assistants)
Understanding Conversational Interfaces
1.Rule-based implementation2.Machine learning-based
Jerry: XiaoIce, will it rain tomorrow?XiaoIce: Tomorrow the weather in Beijing will be nice with a maximum high of 25*C. No rain to get you soaked.Jerry: How about the day after tomorrow?XiaoIce: The day after tomorrow, the weather in Beijing will also be fair, with a max high of 23*C.Jerry: What about Seattle?XiaoIce: Yes sir, I’ve got the answer. The day after tomorrow, Seattle will be cloudy with a max high of 30*C. Perfect for going outside. Jerry: “Finding Mr. Right” is a great movie. What do you think XiaoIce?XiaoIce: Oh, romantic comedies are my favorite! It stars Tang Wei, who finds love in Seattle. You should watch it.Jerry: Do you like Tang Wei?XiaoIce:
XiaoIce: A goddess! She stole my heart… and then went off and married!Tom: To who?XiaoIce: Haven’t you heard?XiaoIce: Tang Wei is engaged to famous Korean director Kim Tae Yong.
What all the fuss about C-UI’s personality?
“People don’t want something truly new, they want the familiar done differently”California Role Rule (Nir Eyal)
• We moved from CLI (think MS-DOS) to GUI (MacOS and Windows)• GUI used real-life objects as interfaces: Recycle Bin, Magnifying
Glass etc.• Glass-look UI pioneered by Apple through iMac and iPhone
Are people you interact with dry and boring? Then why keep chat-bots so?
Why should you care about your bot’s personality?