5 Best AI Chatbot platforms to build your own chatbots

• by Lucas
• May 26, 2024

An efficient interaction with the customers is the primary goal of any business owners. However, Artificial Intelligence or AI chatbots, the name which is so popular these days, is transforming the way businesses interact with their customers. 

The advanced technology is making these AI chatbots capable of handling complex tasks and streamline the business operations. These include responding to customer inquiries and resolving the issues promptly that increases the customer interaction with the business. This is why many business owners are looking for the best AI chatbots to drive sales and business growth. 

The following comprehensive guide will help you with the list of the best AI chatbots 2024. We will also explain the unique features of the chatbots and the applications in various industries that help business people make decisions so easily and quickly. So, if you are the one looking to automate your business operations including sales and marketing then this article is for you.

What is an AI chatbot?

An AI chatbot is a system that came from artificial intelligence technology that helps in automating and increasing the interaction between humans  and machines. Chatbot building platform offers tools to create user interfaces that enable the communication of chatbots and humans. These can be from the basic Q&A chatbots to the most advanced language understanding chatbots.

Moreover, these AI chatbots are becoming popular because they can automate routine tasks and reduce the cost for companies. Companies can create powerful chatbots with Natural Language Processing (NLP) or Machine Learning  to provide meaningful interaction with the customers and also provide valuable data insights. Due to this kind of automation, businesses, no matter of size or industry,  are turning to the world of AI powered chatbots. 

5 Best AI Chatbot Platforms

In the current market, there are a number of AI powered chatbot platforms based on size and budget. But, choosing the right one can be difficult for business owners and it is important to be careful with the features of AI chatbots. Here is a list of some of the best AI chatbot platforms that you should consider to grow your business in 2024. 

1. IBM Watsonx Assistant

IBM Watsonx assistant is another AI chatbot platform that creates voice and virtual assistants for customer service interaction. The platform uses artificial intelligence technology and language processing models to improve customer service and reduce the wait times. As per traditional chatbots, Watson can query knowledge bases and work as human agents that make it useful in cloud and on-premises environments. 

Key features of IBM Watsonx include:

• The integration of artificial intelligence is the primary feature for better customer interaction.

• There are a large number of other integrations with the existing tools and enhanced security measures.

• The feature of visual builder makes the chatbot creation easy without any knowledge of coding.

• The platform also allows the integration of voice capabilities into telephonic customer support systems.

• The performance of the platform may vary depending on implementation and use but IBM promotes Watsonx for improving the efficiency of customer service of any business.

Why should you consider?

• IBM Watson Assistant, the powerful AI chatbot delivers high accurate speech recognition and advanced transcriptions. So, you can come out of non flexible IVR interactions and use generative artificial intelligence to interact with customers confidently over the phone.

• You can reduce the operation and overhead cost significantly.

2. Dialogflow

Developed by Google, Dialogflow is the artificial intelligence chatbot platform with two editions, Dialogflow CX  (advanced) and Dialogflow ES (standard). The platform makes 24/7 customer service easier through virtual agents and provides interactive voice response (IVR) systems that can handle routine tasks. And also provide seamless transition to human agents for complicated issues. Dialogflow’s versatility can enable connection with customers on various platforms to ensure accurate responses.

Key features of Dialogflow include:

• Dialogflow supports intuitive conversations and offers a development platform for voicebots and chatbots.

• The platform contains generative AI agents and visual flow builders for easy development and managing conversation. 

• Dialogflow is a scalable platform that supports a wide range of use cases like voice bots for customer service and chatbots for B2C interactions.

• The multi language support and omnichannel integration makes this platform the best for businesses looking to enhance customer engagement and communication process.

Why should you consider Dialogflow?

• The platform provides a seamless integration with Google Assistant, so you can use it to power google assistant and other integrations.

• It also provides Google Cloud Enterprise with grade security, privacy, support and SLAs.

3. Amazon Lex

Amazon Lex is another chatbot platform provider for the purpose of conversation in applications using both text and voice. Using functionalities such as automatic speech recognition (ASR) and Natural Learning Processing (NLP) the platform allows users to create engaging customer  experiences. Because Amazon Lex uses complex learning technologies, the platform is accessible to developers or chatbot builders in building chatbots. 

Key features of Amazon Lex include:

• The platform is scalable as a fully managed service that eliminates the need for users to manage infrastructure.

• Their cost-effectiveness adds to its appeal that offer flexible conversational interfaces.

• Integrating easily with AWS services provided by Amazon and simplifying bot creation without the need for deep learning expertise.

Why should you consider Amazon Lex?

• Amazon Lex provides an easy to use console to guide you through the process of creating your own chatbot.

• The platform provides automatic speech recognition and natural language understanding capabilities.

4. Azure Bot Service

Azure Bot Service is one of the best chatbot development platforms provided by Microsoft Azure that offers various tools. These tools can increase the customer engagement of any business to drive sales and growth. The platform is integrated with FaceBook Messenger, Slack and Microsoft Teams. Azure Bot Service also provides SDKs and APIs for custom channel integration.

Key features of Azure Bot Service include:

• Natural Language Processing with Microsoft’s language understanding intelligent services.

• The platform has various integration options with most popular messaging platforms and custom channels.

• It also provides a framework for building and multi-functional chatbots.

• The platform also provides service integration for advanced features such as sentiment analysis and image recognition.

Why should you consider Azure Bot Service?

• The platform provides detailed analytics and insights into how the bot is performing.

• No code is needed for developers to build conversational AI chatbots due to its integration with power virtual agents.

5. BotPress

BotPress is one of the best chatbot building platforms that offers an inclusive AI chatbot. The integration of GPT-3 and GPT-4 allows to create more personalized chat experiences and this platform supports over 100 languages to enhance the conversation automation. Users can build complex bots such as eCommerce customer service by its easy to interface.

Key features of the Botpress

• Botpress, an AI chatbot platform is provided by advanced natural language models like GPT 3  and GPT 4 to create the most engaged customer experiences. 

• The built-in emulator and debugger make the platform more efficient for chatbot testing purposes.

• Due to the low code tool, it is highly accessible for non coders to create and manage chatbots.

• The platform provides a free version for beginners with scalable options for both team and enterprise usage.

• Finally, with just one click, the users can deploy across multiple channels and languages.

Why should you consider BotPress?

• The platform has built-in AI to create custom flows and leverage the power of AI in your chatbot.

• BotPress is designed to build chatbots using visual flows and training data in the form of entities and slots.

In conclusion, AI chatbot platforms provide customer automation and personalized customer experiences. They offer a wealth of options to every business’s journey into the digital age. So, businesses can discover the transformative effects they can have on operations, customer experience and overall digital presence.  

How can you build chatbots using chatbot platforms?

Building chatbots using chatbot platforms involves several key steps to ensure a functional, effective and user-friendly bot. Here's a streamlined process in six steps:

Clearly outline what you want your chatbot to achieve. This could range from 

• Customer service

• Lead generation

• Booking appointments, to provide information. 

Know your target users and their needs to tailor the bot's responses and capabilities effectively.

Look for platforms that offer the features you need such as natural language processing (NLP), integration capabilities and user-friendly interfaces.

Ensure the platform fits within your budget and offers scalable solutions as your needs grow.

Map out the conversation paths the bot will follow, including greeting messages, user queries, and bot responses. Many platforms offer pre-built templates for common use cases, which can save time and ensure best practices in conversation design.

Use the platform’s tools to create intents, entities and responses. This involves defining how the bot recognizes user inputs and triggers appropriate responses. Provide the bot with sample dialogues and train it to improve accuracy in understanding and responding to user inputs.

Run extensive tests to identify and fix any issues in the conversational flow, response accuracy and integrations.

 After launching, continuously monitor user interactions and gather feedback. Use this data to make improvements and update the bot regularly to enhance its performance and user satisfaction.

Comparison of the AI Chatbot platforms