SmartAction
Encyclopedia
SmartAction is a company developing artificial intelligence technologies that was founded by inventor and entrepreneur Peter Voss.
.) Part of the problem has been the difficulty of defining an adequate theory of intelligence that can serve as a framework to guide hardware implementations. Starting in the early 1990s Voss developed a new theory of intelligence which is outlined in the book Artificial General Intelligence. In 2001 Voss founded an R&D startup, Adaptive AI, Inc., to research and develop a prototype artificial general intelligence system based on his theory of intelligence. In 2009 Voss founded a subsidiary, Smart Action Company, LLC, to commercialize this technology. The company's first practical application of this new AGI technology is in automated "virtual agents" that answer and make calls for contact centers.
conversation to determine caller meaning and intent, rather than using call menus as in traditional IVR (interactive voice response
) systems. Peter Voss claims this technology constitutes a new kind of machine learning known as strong AI or AGI (artificial general intelligence
). The fundamental difference between AGI and conventional AI is that AGI systems learn naturally the way humans do, and therefore do not need to be programmed. This "[ability] to think, reason and remember, and tackle any subject like a human" gives AGI systems unprecedented flexibility and upgradeability, enabling learning "on the fly" without expensive programming changes.
that use speech recognition
technology and conventional menu call routing. Inago is an IVR provider that uses conventional AI (not AGI) technology. AGI companies such as Novamente also offer intelligent virtual agents, but with a different market focus. SmartAction is the first AGI-based virtual agent offering for call centers. Customers include Motivational Fulfillment and Logistics and Technology for Business.
History
The problem of developing artificial intelligence that learns the way humans do has challenged researchers since at least the 1940s. (See History of artificial intelligenceHistory of artificial intelligence
The history of artificial intelligence began in antiquity, with myths, stories and rumors of artificial beings endowed with intelligence or consciousness by master craftsmen; as Pamela McCorduck writes, AI began with "an ancient wish to forge the gods."...
.) Part of the problem has been the difficulty of defining an adequate theory of intelligence that can serve as a framework to guide hardware implementations. Starting in the early 1990s Voss developed a new theory of intelligence which is outlined in the book Artificial General Intelligence. In 2001 Voss founded an R&D startup, Adaptive AI, Inc., to research and develop a prototype artificial general intelligence system based on his theory of intelligence. In 2009 Voss founded a subsidiary, Smart Action Company, LLC, to commercialize this technology. The company's first practical application of this new AGI technology is in automated "virtual agents" that answer and make calls for contact centers.
Technology
The company claims its artificial intelligence technology enables its virtual agents to engage in open, natural languageNatural language processing
Natural language processing is a field of computer science and linguistics concerned with the interactions between computers and human languages; it began as a branch of artificial intelligence....
conversation to determine caller meaning and intent, rather than using call menus as in traditional IVR (interactive voice response
Interactive voice response
Interactive voice response is a technology that allows a computer to interact with humans through the use of voice and DTMF keypad inputs....
) systems. Peter Voss claims this technology constitutes a new kind of machine learning known as strong AI or AGI (artificial general intelligence
Strong AI
Strong AI is artificial intelligence that matches or exceeds human intelligence — the intelligence of a machine that can successfully perform any intellectual task that a human being can. It is a primary goal of artificial intelligence research and an important topic for science fiction writers and...
). The fundamental difference between AGI and conventional AI is that AGI systems learn naturally the way humans do, and therefore do not need to be programmed. This "[ability] to think, reason and remember, and tackle any subject like a human" gives AGI systems unprecedented flexibility and upgradeability, enabling learning "on the fly" without expensive programming changes.
Competitors
SmartAction's intelligent IVR service competes with traditional speech IVR services such as TuvoxTuVox
TuVox is a company that produces VXML-based telephone speech-recognition applications to replace DTMF touch-tone systems for their clients.-History:...
that use speech recognition
Speech recognition
Speech recognition converts spoken words to text. The term "voice recognition" is sometimes used to refer to recognition systems that must be trained to a particular speaker—as is the case for most desktop recognition software...
technology and conventional menu call routing. Inago is an IVR provider that uses conventional AI (not AGI) technology. AGI companies such as Novamente also offer intelligent virtual agents, but with a different market focus. SmartAction is the first AGI-based virtual agent offering for call centers. Customers include Motivational Fulfillment and Logistics and Technology for Business.
See also
- Artificial General IntelligenceStrong AIStrong AI is artificial intelligence that matches or exceeds human intelligence — the intelligence of a machine that can successfully perform any intellectual task that a human being can. It is a primary goal of artificial intelligence research and an important topic for science fiction writers and...
- Interactive voice responseInteractive voice responseInteractive voice response is a technology that allows a computer to interact with humans through the use of voice and DTMF keypad inputs....
- Speech recognitionSpeech recognitionSpeech recognition converts spoken words to text. The term "voice recognition" is sometimes used to refer to recognition systems that must be trained to a particular speaker—as is the case for most desktop recognition software...
- Speech synthesisSpeech synthesisSpeech synthesis is the artificial production of human speech. A computer system used for this purpose is called a speech synthesizer, and can be implemented in software or hardware...
(text-to-speech (TTS)) - Contact centerCall centreA call centre or call center is a centralised office used for the purpose of receiving and transmitting a large volume of requests by telephone. A call centre is operated by a company to administer incoming product support or information inquiries from consumers. Outgoing calls for telemarketing,...