Skype rolls out preview chat bots on Mac and on the Web, coming in fairly hot on the heels of their launch on the messaging app's latest versions for Windows desktop, Android, iPhone and iPad a few weeks ago.
To outline what exactly this entails, users can now interact with these bots and get AI-flavored assistance across virtually every platform used nowadays.
"[W]e've been working hard to bring this new experience to more users, and today we're pleased to release preview Skype Bots on two additional platforms: Mac and Web," Skype says.
While the whole process is essentially the same, there are some subtle differences. Here's a quick rundown on how to get started on the Mac and the Web:
How To Talk To Chat Bots On Mac
Step 1: Click on Contacts in the menu on the left.
Step 2: Choose Add Bot ... to pull up a list of bots and the search field to look for a specific one.
Step 3: Tap on Add to Contacts, and there you have it.
How To Talk To Chat Bots On The Web
Step 1: Click on Discover Bots found in the menu on the left.
Step 2: Pick out a bot from the list, and voila!
As for the availability of the chat bots on the Web, they are currently limited to Australia, Canada, England, Ireland, India, New Zealand, Singapore and the United States.
Skype also introduces two new Bing-powered bots called Murphy and Summarize.
Now, Murphy is a chat bot that'll create images to users' "what if" questions. What's more, it'll continue to learn and yield better results as people keep on using it.
"You can chat with Murphy using Skype and ask it hypothetical 'what if ...' questions like 'what if I were superman?' Murphy will try to respond with an image that visualizes an answer to your question," the developers say.
Meanwhile, Summarize can give users the gist of a webpage when they don't have the time to read every word and every sentence, providing an overview of the main points.
As everyone can see, bots are filling up the Skype space. Let us know what you think of this bot invasion in the comments section below.
