Key Takeaways
- Slack has unveiled a new AI agent that it expects to become a key part of users’ everyday workflows.
- The enhanced version of the existing Slackbot synthesizes information from across users’ chats, summarizes complex conversations, and more.
- The company hopes this rollout will enable it to take big step forward, but should be mindful of growing evidence that AI is not a silver bullet.
Slack has announced a new native AI agent that “understands your work, adapts to your style, and helps every employee to move faster,” according to a press release. Beginning this week, phased rollout of the feature will continue throughout February and March.
According to the press release, Slackbot, the existing automated bot that delivers notifications, reminders, and responses to basic user queries, has been “rebuilt” to function as a “trusted, always-on colleague that answers questions instantly and acts on your behalf.” As it is native to Slack, the new AI agent doesn’t require installation and is simply activated by engaging it in conversation.
In recent years, AI has gone beyond a neat innovation and become table stakes for the business sector. And with most CEOs steadfastly committed to the technology, this trend is showing no signs of abating.
Slack Unveils New, Improved Slackbot
Slack, the interpersonal messenger platform used by thousands of businesses around the world, has launched a new AI agent. According to a press release, it will begin phased rollout in January and continue into February.
According to the company, Slackbot has been enhanced with a new set of AI-powered features. At present, it will only be made available to Business+ and Enterprise+ customers, meaning that you’ll have to pay at least $9 per user, per month to get the benefits.
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The company also claims that this rollout does not signal the end of its AI ambitions. Rather, users should expect Slackbot to become “even more capable,” eventually consolidating itself as a vital cog in a business’s day-to-day operations.
New Slack AI Agent Different to Competition
Slack has indicated that the key difference between its AI agent and similar efforts from its contemporaries lies in context. In other words, because the tool is native to the platform, it is already embedded in users’ conversations, and does not require any adjustment time to understand your business or ways of working.
Thus, Slackbot is able to proactively summarize complex conversations, draft messages in the user’s tone of voice, and flag issues that might otherwise have gone unnoticed. The company claims that it will be particularly valuable for synthesizing information from across users’ disparate channels, calls, and individual chats.
According to Chief Product Officer and interim CEO, Rob Seaman: “To be truly useful at work, AI needs context…with Slackbot, we’ve built an intuitive, deeply native experience inside Slack that people can trust to help them move work forwards, not just answer questions.”
AI Deeply Entrenched in Everyday Business Operations
With this latest announcement, Slack is joining the likes of Meta, Google, and many other tech giants in betting big on AI. There is certainly a huge appetite for it across the business sector, with several high-profile companies streamlining their workforces while embarking on AI pushes in recent months.
While the upsides are well-documented, there is also a growing body of evidence that AI is not the silver bullet that many have speculated. In particular, companies are vulnerable of accruing “AI debt,” a term given to describe when improper deployment of the technology creates unwanted financial, morale-based, and reputational ramifications.
Slack hopes that its revamped Slackbot will push the company forward. Nonetheless, it should remain – along with its competitors – mindful of the potential repercussions that could arise when “innovation for innovation’s sake” trumps reason.
