Mark Zuckerberg has announced that Meta is building “a new top-level product group” to consolidate generative Artificial Intelligence into its services, including Instagram and WhatsApp.
The CEO said this integration of AI into Meta products will start by building creative tools, but its long-term goal is to create “AI personas that can help people in diverse ways.” Zuckerberg noted that the team would do a lot of foundational work before it shares these “futuristic” experiences with users.
This evolution commences by testing text-based AI tools on WhatsApp, Messenger or ChatGPT-styled conversation bots. However, Meta might maximize these features to help businesses in sales and customer support.
The Facebook parent company will also experiment with AI-aided filters and ad formats on Instagram along with “video and multi-modal experiences.”
According to Axios, Ahmad Al-Dahle, a former Apple executive, is expected to lead the project while the team revert to the Chris Cox, the Chief Product Officer.
Meta joins the ‘AI war’
Generative AI tools have existed for a while, but the tech reached mainstream stardom with OpenAI’s ChatGPT bot. Microsoft has since incorporated top-notch AI features into Bing search and Edge Browser. Earlier this month, Google announced a rival product called “Bard“.
Read more: Google unveils ‘Bard’ AI tool to rival ChatGPT
Moreover, other engines search engines like You.com and Neeva have also adopted AI-powered chat products. Facebook-rival, Snapchat is not excluded, as it launched a custom-trained chatbot for its paid subscribers this month.
Meta joining the list of companies to integrate AI-powered chats into its products does not come as a shock. The company has been through a rough patch with layoffs and court cases putting it in the news recently.
Also, Mark Zuckerberg’s big bet on the metaverse is yet to pay off, and the company seeks ways to generate more revenue.
Last week, it debuted “Meta verified subscription program”, whereby users could get a blue badge by verifying their accounts using a government ID and paying a fee of USD $11.99 per month on the web or USD $14.99 a month on Apple’s IOS system and Android. But just like it is with other social networks, paid plans are yet to show a semblance of major revenue adoption.
Read More; Africa Arise! 2023 is the year of AI
Background of AI power chatbot
MIT professor Joseph Weizenbaum developed the first chatbot in the 1960s. It was called ELIZA, and other popular chatbots were developed in the second half of the 20th century later on.
Early in 2016, the introduction of the first wave of artificial data technology began in the design of chatbots. Social media enabled developers to build a chatbot for their trademark or service so that customers could carry out some of their daily actions from inside their messaging platforms.
AI chatbot responds to questions posted in its raw language like a person. It responds using a combination of pre-programmed scripts and machine learning algorithms. When asked a question, the chatbot will answer using the knowledge database that is currently available to it.
Read More; Experts raise concerns about AI chatbots
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