AI Chatbot

An AI chatbot is an automated dialogue system that uses artificial intelligence (LLM + RAG) to answer customer queries in natural language – on WhatsApp, Telegram, Live Chat, and other messaging channels.

What is an AI Chatbot?

An AI chatbot is a software-based dialogue system that understands natural language and responds to customer queries – without human intervention. Unlike rule-based bots ("if customer says X, reply Y"), an AI chatbot uses large language models (LLMs) to grasp the context of a query and formulate appropriate answers.

The key difference: rule-based bots fail at anything that doesn't fit exactly into their decision trees. AI chatbots also understand colloquial language, typos, and unexpected phrasing. "Where's my package?", "delivery still not here!!", and "Can you tell me when my order will arrive?" – all the same intent, all correctly understood.

How Does an AI Chatbot Work?

Modern AI chatbots in customer service use a combination of two technologies:

1. LLM (Large Language Model): The language model (e.g., GPT, Claude, Llama) understands the query and generates a natural-language response. It provides the "language capability" – grammatically correct, context-sensitive sentences.

2. RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation): Before the LLM responds, a retrieval system searches the company's own knowledge base. Relevant passages are passed to the LLM as context. Result: the bot answers based on your data, not on its general training.

Without RAG, the AI "hallucinates" – it invents plausible but incorrect answers. With RAG, the bot stays factual.

Hybrid Model: Bot + Human

No AI chatbot answers 100% of queries correctly. Modern systems therefore operate in hybrid mode: the bot handles standard queries (opening hours, shipping status, FAQ) and automatically forwards complex cases to human agents.

When does the bot hand over?

  • Confidence score below threshold (e.g., <70%)
  • Customer explicitly asks for a human
  • Escalation keywords ("complaint", "lawyer", "supervisor")
  • Topic is marked as bot-blocked (e.g., complaints, cancellations)

The agent sees the entire bot dialogue plus gathered information – no "please explain your issue again". Best practice: 60–80% bot resolution, rest to humans.

Which Channels?

AI chatbots work on all chat-based channels: WhatsApp Business API, Telegram, Facebook Messenger, Instagram DM, Live Chat, and SMS. Email is received in the Unified Inbox but doesn't support multi-step bot dialogues – auto-replies are possible here.

Multichannel advantage: you train the bot once and it responds on all channels identically. The knowledge base is cross-channel.

GDPR and Works Council

When deploying an AI chatbot in the EU, two regulatory aspects are critical:

GDPR: Customer data processed by the bot is subject to GDPR. Ensure EU hosting, a Data Processing Agreement (DPA) with the provider, and a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) per GDPR Art. 35.

Works Council (Germany): Does the AI monitor chat history or agent response times? If so, co-determination rights under works council law may apply. Obtain approval before go-live.

AI Chatbot with SendSeven

SendSeven offers an integrated AI chatbot that runs on all chat channels simultaneously. Upload your documents to the knowledge base, define tone and escalation rules – and the bot answers customer questions in natural language.

Benefits:

  • EU hosting: All data on EU servers – no data transfer outside the EU
  • Hybrid mode: Seamless handoff to human agents in the Unified Inbox
  • Multichannel: One bot, all chat channels
  • Configurable confidence threshold: You decide when the bot hands over
  • Conversation log: Every bot dialogue is recorded – for QA and training

Setup guide: AI Bot Setup Guide.