Chatbot

A chatbot is a program that converses in writing. The first generation followed rigid scripts — buttons, keywords, decision trees — and failed the moment users went off-script. The current generation, built on large language models, understands free-form phrasing; the practical gap is huge, even though the name stuck.

For a local business, a chatbot has two genuine uses: answering frequent questions on the website (hours, areas, base pricing) and capturing requests outside opening hours. Its limit is just as real: part of your clientele wants to hear a voice, not tap on a keyboard. A chatbot and an AI voice agent aren't opposites — they're the same brain, wired to two channels: text and phone.