Chatbots. News Digest 04/16

Booking.com launches a chatbot to connect hotels and travelers

The largest travel company in the world, announces a chat communication service that allows its millions of users to interact more easily with the hotels before and after their stays.

Users can use the chat service in two ways. First, they can start by asking a question of their host from within their Booking.com account on any device. That includes messaging directly from the desktop, mobile web, or within Booking.com apps on iOS or Android. Users can initiate any kind of conversation they’d like with the accommodation.

Alternatively, a chat can be initiated from the host’s side. A hotel can send a notification to the user’s phone, which pulls the user into a conversation within the Booking.com messaging service.

Source: venturebeat.com

Lybrate Releases Facebook Messenger Chatbot That Can Answer Health Questions

Close on the heels of Amazon's Alexa-powered devices, which can answer health-related questions, Lybrate has empowered its Facebook Messenger chatbot to answer health queries.

Users of Lybrate in India will be able to get health advice and tips from the online platform's chatbot.

Source: techtimes.com

This chatbot helps you prepare for tests, and it just got funded

Prepathon wants to personalize test preps with bots. Users of the app create a virtual classroom where a virtual coach responds to queries, provides motivation, and makes learning interactive.

Source: techinasia.com

How a Chatbot Helped This Vinyl Records Startup Make $1 Million in 8 Months

The vinyl store, called The Edit, has sold $1 million worth of records since it debutedeight months ago. David Cotter, CEO of ReplyYes and former Amazon.com general manager, attributes much of the site's success to his chatbot technology, which leans on an algorithm that recommends records based on purchase behavior and other interest-level signals.

Source: billboard.com