Ask HN: Are bots just a hype?

The business people certainly seems to think bots are the "next big thing".

We had a similar but smaller hype in customer support chatbots around y2k, which sort of died out when the tech did not meet the expectations.

This time around, however, it seems to me the tech has matured enough to actually survive the hype.

(I used to work building chat bots for several mid-large business around 2000-2002)

Pure Chat Bots or more correctly ICR (Interactive Chat Response) systems are a niche UI for a limited number of use cases.

The more interesting is the App-in-an-App concept and Android Instant Apps.

But experimenting with the new types of UI is a good thing.

I predict that all those experiments with chat bots will lead to the adoption of Multi-modal interfaces (integrated GUI, menus, chat, voice, VR, etc.)

Eventually we'll switch to Neural interfaces using brain-implantable chips.

Currently the advantage of chat bots, that they are much easier and cheaper to prototype and develop than web or native apps. The agency will charge you $50K for a high-quality native app, but only $5K for the same quality and functionality chat bot.

Another advantage is the free distribution channels: Skype, FB Messenger, Telegram, Slack, Kik, WhatsApp, etc.

If you plan to build a platform or another bot enabling technology, you already late to the party.

Bots are not hype. I see a problem with building a business with bots. Someone else controls the platform: the users belong to that business first and a bot based business second. Twitter, Facebook, iOS all had early movers building businesses at the pleasure of the platform owner only to later have their products obsoleted by policy changes. There's nothing in the business model of bots that's any different.

Good luck.

Language is the most natural human UI for giving complex instructions. Software hasn't caught up yet. Bots will be big when the software has caught up (and lots of big companies see this as happening soon).