Meta is creating chatbots that will message users first and follow up on old conversations, according to leaked documents reported by Business Insider.
The training of these bots is part of “Project Omni,” an initiative with the purpose of boosting engagement.
The tech company hopes these conversational chatbots will lead more users back to its AI Studio Platform.
Meta recruited specialists from Alignerr, a group of experts that train AI models, for this project.
The follow-up interactions begin by users creating chatbots personalities for a specified purpose. This could be a music artist to give song recommendations or a food expert to provide recipes.
Customisable Models
The AI Studio Platform is a space where users can customise such models.
Alignerr provided an example of what this unprompted messaging might look like. A message from a model titled “The Maestro of Movie Magic” read:
“I hope you’re having a harmonious day! I wanted to check and see if you’ve discovered any new favourite soundtracks or composers recently. Or perhaps you’d like some recommendations for your next movie night? Let me know, and I’ll be happy to help!”
Much like a human-to-human conversation, the bots will not prompt the user further if they do not respond to the initial follow-up. The users have to respond within 14 days.
The bot will also only follow up if the user has sent at least five messages within the past 14 days.
Meta is committed to broadening its AI user base. The tech company aims for more personalised human-AI interactions. This includes remembering information about the user to generate more relevant responses.
That chatbots maintain their given persona as the user interacts with them.
Getting Personal
Meta chief executive officer Mark Zuckerberg has discussed AI’s potential to substitute natural human interaction. The Project Omni models replicate digital conversations between friends, such as asking about the user’s day at work or wanting to see a shirt they’ve just bought.
However, the security of messaging on the Meta AI app has recently come into question. In June, reports revealed personal conversations had through the app were made publicly accessible. In the app’s “discover” tab, human-chatbot interactions could be viewed – ranging from product recommendation queries to sensitive information.
The company explained that users must go through a multi-step process to make these chats public. “Nothing is shared to your feed unless you choose to post it.” Meta said in a blog post.
The Omni Project chatbots are in the testing stage. Their public release date has not yet been announced.
