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No, it's that chat bots have no actual power to fix most issues. They exist to make it more difficult to escalate up the bureaucracy where there is staff that c

No, it's that chat bots have no actual power to fix most issues. They exist to make it more difficult to escalate up the bureaucracy where there is staff that can actually problem solve, issue refunds, give credits, etc. Chat bots are merely a filter to get rid of easily pacified pushover customers and those who refuse to read instructions or documentation.

dopidopHN 3y ago
On point. A few chatbot can actually do stuff and then it’s fine.
- tmccrary55 3y ago
  Until it isn't?
foobarchu 3y ago
And the ones that can do something would be better served as a simple form. My state has used a chatbot for car registration renewals for years. It works just fine, I can't truly complain, but it's literally just a higher friction way to fill in a short form. Why did it need to be a chatbot?
- eastbound 3y ago
  It’s a state, they need to showcase the modern stuff, both to fund new ideas and to show modernity to the citizen.
- oriolid 3y ago
  The usual explanation, true or not, is that someone was selling the state a chatbot as the modern solution and since the buyer isn't spending their own money they will happily buy it without thinking if it's useful.
satvikpendem 3y ago
Yep, if a chatbot could do all those things then I'd honestly rather use that chatbot than talk to a human, unless I had some very specific concern. But it seems that GPT models can understand other humans just fine.
- rmbyrro 3y ago
  What do you mean by "other" humans?
  - satvikpendem 3y ago
    As in LLMs have human-like understanding in a way that previous chatbots did not, they can both understand and emit human text.
    - laxd 3y ago
      ... they can both understand and emit human text. Yikes! We are headed towards customer service hell. At least I'd like there to be some human feelings while I'm getting fucked.
      - satvikpendem 3y ago
        Why is that yikes? Navigating a UI is oftentimes easier than calling in and being placed on hold. Not in all cases, as I've said, but many.
        laxd 3y ago
        Phone queues are frustrating. But I'm not there to get mindless text generated back at me. I've already experienced it. Reminds me of all the dystopian art trying to depict the human despair and powerlessness of facing the system that society has created.
        satvikpendem 3y ago
Terr_ 3y ago
> Chat bots are merely a filter No, it's also about data entry. It would be a terrible waste for a human to be sitting there going: "No, that account ID isn't right either, please check again."
hiAndrewQuinn 3y ago
patio11's recent "Seeing Like a Bank" makes a pretty persuasive argument that these kinds of first pass filters are in fact very important to ensure that costs can stay reasonable to you and I, the rare times we do actually have a problem and usually have to walk far up the chain of command to get it fixed. https://www.bitsaboutmoney.com/archive/seeing-like-a-bank/ https://www.bitsaboutmoney.com/archive/seeing-like-a-bank/
- seanhunter 3y ago
  The thing about that line of argument is that the balance between things being sorted by the bot vs needing a human is almost never right. My current employer has a slack helpbot where you dm the bot and it does a first pass at trying to find the right ticket/form etc to solve your problem. If it can't, it opens a regular helpdesk ticket with the info you have given it so far and the helpdesk sorts your problem out. It's great. Most corporate chatbots however are not like this. For example, when I went recently to resolve a problem with an insurance policy I got pushed on the website to the chatbot. After going through a bit of annoying to-ing and fro-ing the chatbot told me it couldn't do anything and I had to call up. At this point all the information I had given it while it was trying to resolve my problem is in the dumpster and as far as its concerned, job done. I however have wasted a bunch of time and am back to square 1. Worse than that, when I sit in the (now incredibly long) phone queue to speak to the few human helpdesk agents who remain I have to listen to the recording repeatedly telling me "why not use our super-helpful chatbot".

dopidopHN 3y ago

On point. A few chatbot can actually do stuff and then it’s fine.

tmccrary55 3y ago
Until it isn't?

foobarchu 3y ago

And the ones that can do something would be better served as a simple form. My state has used a chatbot for car registration renewals for years. It works just fine, I can't truly complain, but it's literally just a higher friction way to fill in a short form. Why did it need to be a chatbot?

eastbound 3y ago
It’s a state, they need to showcase the modern stuff, both to fund new ideas and to show modernity to the citizen.
oriolid 3y ago
The usual explanation, true or not, is that someone was selling the state a chatbot as the modern solution and since the buyer isn't spending their own money they will happily buy it without thinking if it's useful.

satvikpendem 3y ago

Yep, if a chatbot could do all those things then I'd honestly rather use that chatbot than talk to a human, unless I had some very specific concern. But it seems that GPT models can understand other humans just fine.

rmbyrro 3y ago
What do you mean by "other" humans?
- satvikpendem 3y ago
  As in LLMs have human-like understanding in a way that previous chatbots did not, they can both understand and emit human text.
  - laxd 3y ago
    ... they can both understand and emit human text. Yikes! We are headed towards customer service hell. At least I'd like there to be some human feelings while I'm getting fucked.
    - satvikpendem 3y ago
      Why is that yikes? Navigating a UI is oftentimes easier than calling in and being placed on hold. Not in all cases, as I've said, but many.
      - laxd 3y ago
        Phone queues are frustrating. But I'm not there to get mindless text generated back at me. I've already experienced it. Reminds me of all the dystopian art trying to depict the human despair and powerlessness of facing the system that society has created.
        satvikpendem 3y ago

Terr_ 3y ago

> Chat bots are merely a filter No, it's also about data entry. It would be a terrible waste for a human to be sitting there going: "No, that account ID isn't right either, please check again."

hiAndrewQuinn 3y ago

patio11's recent "Seeing Like a Bank" makes a pretty persuasive argument that these kinds of first pass filters are in fact very important to ensure that costs can stay reasonable to you and I, the rare times we do actually have a problem and usually have to walk far up the chain of command to get it fixed. https://www.bitsaboutmoney.com/archive/seeing-like-a-bank/ https://www.bitsaboutmoney.com/archive/seeing-like-a-bank/

seanhunter 3y ago
The thing about that line of argument is that the balance between things being sorted by the bot vs needing a human is almost never right. My current employer has a slack helpbot where you dm the bot and it does a first pass at trying to find the right ticket/form etc to solve your problem. If it can't, it opens a regular helpdesk ticket with the info you have given it so far and the helpdesk sorts your problem out. It's great. Most corporate chatbots however are not like this. For example, when I went recently to resolve a problem with an insurance policy I got pushed on the website to the chatbot. After going through a bit of annoying to-ing and fro-ing the chatbot told me it couldn't do anything and I had to call up. At this point all the information I had given it while it was trying to resolve my problem is in the dumpster and as far as its concerned, job done. I however have wasted a bunch of time and am back to square 1. Worse than that, when I sit in the (now incredibly long) phone queue to speak to the few human helpdesk agents who remain I have to listen to the recording repeatedly telling me "why not use our super-helpful chatbot".