First there was Siri and Alexa, the familiar voices on our Apple and Amazon devices. Joining them recently is Samsung, which acquired an intelligent assistant startup founded by Dag Kittlaus, Adam Cheyer and Chris Brigham, the creators of Siri. Not far behind are Microsoft and Tencent; both have started development of their own virtual assistants.
As these global tech giants continue to invest in chatbot technologies, human-robot interactions will soon become more frequent and ubiquitous. This is a trend some say will fundamentally transform how we connect with companies and brands, as well as reshape the way companies acquire and engage with their customers.
In a study on the implications of artificial intelligence (AI), Niraj Dawar and Neil Bendle from Canada’s Ivey Business School assert that virtual assistants will become the primary channel through which we obtain information and choose products. They boldly predict that in time, “consumers will shift their allegiance from a trusted brand to a trusted AI assistant.”
At the core of these
