People have been using the internet to find the information they need since 1990, when a student at McGill University created the first search engine ever. Google is currently the most widely used search engine in the world, with over 89 billion visits per month (Similarweb, 2022). Additionally, there were over 2.5 trillion searches on Google in 2022 (Kiran, 2023). However, the volume of information has also grown significantly as a result of people’s desire to conduct online information searches. People found it more difficult to locate the information they actually sought as a result of what is frequently referred to as an “information flood.” Programmers and engineers started looking for ways to allow users to conduct information searches.
What is a chatbot?
‘Chatbots’ are a brand-new category of search engine that has recently entered the market. Chatbots are able to respond to a user’s query in a tailored and targeted manner, in contrast to other search engines that have existed up until now. This implies that consumers can interact with the information they want in addition to searching for it. While most search engines forget their data after one search, chatbots can store user input for a long time (Hingragia, 2022).
How does the chatbot work?
Natural language processing (NLP) is the method used by chatbots to produce their responses. NLP makes it possible for computers to comprehend and translate human language (Team Capacity, 2023). As a result, the more specific and accurate the answer provided by the chatbot, the more detailed the input is. NLP chatbots basically break down the user input into smaller pieces to determine the meaning of context, and this process is called “parsing.” For instance, if the input is “I am hungry,” then chatbots break it down to “I,” “am,” and “hungry.”
What are some problems with chatbots?
Chatbots are not always accurate and wise, though. The biggest issue is that they occasionally invent facts. This might have a significant effect on users and society. Lack of precision renders the program untrustworthy and prevents users from using it. Additionally, if someone does accept that incorrect response, they will work to spread that false knowledge, which eventually causes confusion throughout society as a whole. In addition, chatbots do not have any security against hackers and collect data from users without their consent (Yalalov, 2023), which raises concerns about data privacy.
Conclusion
Today’s chatbots and AIs are developing considerably more quickly than they did fifty years ago. The Economic Times reports that ChatGPT added 1 million users in just two months. This indicates that the ChatGPT of today performs much better than it did two months ago. Although there are many problems with chatbots right now, they have the potential to be wonderful human supporters.
Reference list
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Kiran, H. (2023). The Stupendous World of Google Search Statistics. [online] Techjury. Available at: https://techjury.net/blog/google-search-statistics/ [Accessed 25 July 2023].
Mohsin, M. (2023). 10 Google Search Statistics You Need to Know in 2020 [Infographic]. [online] Oberlo. Available at: https://www.oberlo.com/blog/google-search-statistics [Accessed 25 July 2023].
The Economic Times (2023). ChatGPT witnesses massive rise, Chatbot gains 100 million users in two months. Indiatimes. [online] 5 Mar. Available at: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/new-updates/chatgpt-witnesses-massive-rise-chatbot-gains-100-million-users-in-two-months/articleshow/98428443.cms [Accessed 25 July 2023].
Unifonic Inc (2022). A Quick Guide to the Use of NLP in Chatbots. [online] Unifonic. Available at: https://www.unifonic.com/blogs/nlp-in-chatbots [Accessed 25 July 2023].
Yalalov, D. (2023). 6 AI ChatBot Issues and Challenges: ChatGPT, Bard, Claude. [online] Metaverse Post. Available at: https://mpost.io/6-ai-chatbot-issues-and-challenges-chatgpt-bard-claude/ [Accessed 20 July 2023].
