Six months ago, Facebook Inc. said it would open its Messenger service, making it possible for businesses to build virtual assistants that can chat with the one billion-plus real people who use the communications platform each month. Since then, developers have created more than 33,000 such “chatbots,” which have icons and nicknames that at first glance might not appear that different from a friend or relative in a user’s contact list. ...
Facebook opened its Messenger service for businesses six months ago to build virtual assistants to chat to users, and since that point 33,000 chatbots have been created. The technology is virtually indistinguishable at first glance from a Facebook friend or contact. Mastercard launched a bankbot called Kai last month that uses Facebook Messenger to allow users to check activity on their accounts and set up financial management tools. But the new features are more than just an attempt by companies to make money off of social media.