The benefits of generative AI have been made abundantly clear in recent years, with businesses set to make valuable productivity and efficiency gains, not to mention an improvement in staff morale that Gen AI can provide through the time they spend executing of simple tasks. Productivity and automation tools are benefiting enormously from this AI supercharge, but unfortunately the lines between the companies offering true AI solutions and those that simply market themselves as such are becoming increasingly blurred.
As a result, we often see companies struggle to separate the hype from the reality when looking for the right AI tools. IT leaders are increasingly charged with spotting the difference between true AI tools with integrity and impostors, as successful digital transformations now depend on this ability to distinguish facts from marketing slogans. It is no longer enough for technology providers to simply market products as “AI-driven” – IT professionals are looking for evidence to support this.
This year, I expect that many companies will be better equipped to sort the diamonds from the coal, and that superficial AI solutions like the latter will be exposed.
An eye for AI
Fortunately, IT professionals have not been deterred from implementing AI; there are too many real benefits to be gained from using the right tools. In fact, Freshworks found that a highly significant 71% of IT workers currently rely on AI to support their workloads. The research shows that the rise of the AI generation is directly influencing IT teams to assess whether they are using AI in their workflows, and that they have become better informed and less likely to be influenced by extravagant claims about AI’s capabilities, which no proven examples exist. back them up. The rise of overhyped AI solutions – similar to the rise of cloud computing – has led to a collective awareness of key indicators regarding the validity of AI tools’ claims.
IT professionals are now rightly demanding solid evidence of the effectiveness of AI solutions, and this emphasis on accountability around AI has prompted teams to be cautious when streamlining their technology stacks. There is a real emphasis on ROI for IT teams, ensuring that the tools they are looking for not only improve productivity but also deliver demonstrable value to the business.
This has created a perfect environment for really useful AI tool vendors to make a name for themselves in the IT space, as CIOs look for software that can integrate AI into workflows with real impact. As time goes on, the reputation of those contributing to real productivity gains will increase, making it easier to identify the providers with the right solutions for specific needs.
Selecting the right solution
What differences should companies pay attention to?
Let’s take customer support chatbots as an example. Depending on complexity, a range of chatbot products are available; some are better than others at providing conversational support. The best AI chatbots will leverage natural language processing and machine learning technologies to provide conversational and contextual support, reducing resolution times and freeing up support agents’ time for issues that require a more human touch.
Simpler, rules-based algorithmic chatbots certainly have their value too, provided they are used properly for basic automation of basic customer queries. But if a company is looking for a state-of-the-art AI chatbot that provides meaningful customer interaction and tailors tone and behavior to customer needs, only a chatbot with the right capabilities will work.
A problem arises when there is a discrepancy between the customer’s needs and the solution they have chosen. And with recent marketing sometimes applying the AI sticker a little too generously, IT teams need to clearly define their requirements and check that the solution they choose meets all the requirements. Boxes. To avoid disappointment, organizations with a real need for AI-informed customer interactions must implement rigorous testing practices to ensure they are paying for the product they expect. While different products are useful in their respective use cases, no one wants to pay for one and receive another.
AI, clear my calendar
The right AI assistant can deliver significant business benefits, and the insights AI copilots can provide are already being used across industries. For customer service agents, for example, AI virtual assistants help prioritize cases and summarize customer issues, leading to greater agent efficiency and higher customer satisfaction.
However, a closer look at some AI virtual assistants reveals even more rule-based algorithms and predefined templates. This can manifest itself in the form of schedule management: customers who buy AI assistants expect the ability to understand natural language commands and organize a schedule without actively directing themselves.
True AI technology will be able to understand complex planning preferences, take on the responsibility of making decisions without user input, and remain adaptable to changing circumstances. Assistants without the right AI capabilities will fall into the trap of waiting for specific keywords and phrases to perform simple scheduling actions, yielding little in terms of real productivity gains.
IT teams should test all potential virtual assistant tools for actual AI use by observing how they respond to natural conversations, perform more complex tasks, and how their behavior changes over time. Adaptation is a cornerstone of true AI, and if a virtual assistant is consistent in its mistakes – even when corrected – it may simply be a mismarketed technology.
To test our patience, or to test patience?
There’s a theme here: testing, testing, and more testing. A broader implementation may take a little longer, but doing the work up front can avoid future awkward conversations with the CIO when the issue of return on AI investments comes up.
IT teams must constantly engage in app rationalization; Evaluating AI tools against clear parameters for success can lead to more consistent productivity improvements. The right SaaS solution for any business should be one that can demonstrate value without unnecessary complexity, and the faster IT professionals can distinguish between AI washing and true AI tools, the faster their technology stack can be future-proofed .
We’ve rounded up the best virtual assistant services.
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