5.1 Smart chatbots to answer users’ inquiries about COVID-19 
A chatbot is a computer program that allows humans to interact with technology using a variety of input methods such as voice, text, gesture and touch. It is known by several names, including as a conversational AI bot, AI chatbot, AI assistant, intelligent virtual assistant, virtual customer assistant, digital assistant, conversational agent, virtual agent, conversational interface and more, chatbots are growing in popularity. The chatbot uses NLP (see previous section) to analyze the text input, considers the best response and delivers that back to the user. For instance, it is possible to try the chatbot Elbot (https://www.elbot.com/). Smart chatbots, also known as AI chatbots, should have the following capabilities.
Intelligent Understanding is more than just correctly interpreting the user’s request. It’s about being able to instantly merge other pieces of information such as geolocation or previous preferences into the conversation to deliver a more complete answer.
Memory allows a chatbot to remember pertinent details to reuse during a conversation or implicitly learn about a person to be reused later. For example, a mobile assistant might learn through previous requests and responses that the user clearly prefers Italian cuisine and so will use this information when asked for restaurant recommendations in future.
Sentiment analysis enables a chatbot to understand the mood of the customer and the strength of that feeling. This is particularly important in customer service type applications where it can be linked to complaint escalation flows, but also can be used in other more trivial ways such as choosing which songs to play upon request.
Personality can make a huge difference to engagement and the trust users place in the chatbot. While some companies chose to reinforce it using avatars, personality can easily be conveyed in the conversation alone.
Persistence allows people to pick up a conversation where they last left off, even if they switch devices, making for a more natural and seamless user experience.
Topic switching enables the user to veer off onto another subject, such as asking about payment methods while enquiring if a product is in stock. The chatbot should also then be capable of bringing the user back on track if the primary intent is not reached.
Story 12: Human-Robot to clean hospitals during COVID-19 
Can you guess what the robot is doing (see Figure 29)? Yes, the robot is cleaning at the city state's Alexandra Hospital-Singapore. The robot can stop automatically when someone approaches from the opposite direction. It is popular at the hospital and some patients even wave at her. Remember to say “hello” to the robot when you see it.
Story 13: Smart chatbots to fight against the COVID-19 COVID-19
Have you thought about talking with a chatbot which can solve your health issues as well as other emergency questions? As shown in Figure 30, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has developed the Chabot “Clara” to keep people safe during this pandemic.
