AI Chatbot Terms

A glossary of terms related to AI, chatbots and conversational marketing. Learn the lingo and become a chatbot expert.

1
128K Context Window

A feature that allows models to consider larger amounts of information.

A
AI (Artificial Intelligence)

The simulation of human intelligence processes by machines, especially computer systems.

Algorithm

A set of rules or procedures for solving a problem or accomplishing a task.

Active Learning

A machine learning approach where the model queries the user or an oracle for input on uncertain data.

Agents

Advanced AI systems capable of performing tasks in the real world.

APIs

Application Programming Interfaces that enable GPTs to connect with other services and data.

Assistants API

An API designed for building conversational AI models.

Augmented Language Models

Language models enhanced with external knowledge sources, such as embeddings or vector databases, to improve performance in tasks like retrieval and question answering.

B
Bot Training

The process of improving a chatbot's performance by feeding it data and refining its algorithms.

Bot Personality

The character or persona a chatbot exhibits during interactions, defined by its tone, style, and manner of communication.

Bi-Encoder

An encoder that independently generates embeddings for queries and documents for scalable retrieval.

C
Conversational UI

User interfaces that enable interaction with the user in a conversational manner.

Contextual Understanding

The ability of a system to understand the context in which a user's input is given.

Chatbot Framework

A platform or set of tools used to build, test, and deploy chatbots.

Chatbot Flow

The sequence and structure of interactions that a chatbot follows during a conversation.

Chatbot Deployment

The process of integrating and making a chatbot live on a platform or channel for users to interact with.

Continuous Learning

An AI system's ability to constantly adapt and improve its performance by learning from new data over time.

Chat History

A record of past interactions and conversations between the user and the chatbot.

Conversational Agent

A software program designed to simulate conversation with human users.

Conversational Design

The process of crafting effective and natural dialogues for chatbots and virtual assistants.

Chatbot Metrics

Quantitative measures used to evaluate and optimize the performance, efficiency, and user satisfaction of chatbots.

Chatbot Platform

A software or service that provides tools and infrastructure to design, develop, train, and deploy chatbots.

Custom Instructions

Features allowing users to set preferences for how ChatGPT operates.

Custom GPTs

Tailored versions of ChatGPT for specific tasks or knowledge areas.

ChatGPT Plus

A subscription level for users to access advanced GPT models.

Contextual Retrieval

A retrieval technique that incorporates the broader context of a query, such as user history or dialogue flow.

Context-Aware Generation

A generation technique where AI models create content based on the broader context of the input, including user history and prior interactions.

Cross-Encoder

A type of encoder that jointly processes query-document pairs to determine relevance.

Context Window

The range of input tokens or text that an AI model considers when generating or retrieving responses.

Contextual Embeddings

Embeddings that capture the meaning of words or phrases based on the surrounding context.

D
Deep Learning

A type of machine learning that uses neural networks with many layers.

Dialog Management

The component of a chatbot that handles the flow of conversation.

Disambiguation

The process where a chatbot seeks clarity on ambiguous user input to provide the most accurate response.

DALL·E 3

The latest version of OpenAI’s image generation model.

Document Retrieval

The process of retrieving relevant documents from a collection, often powered by vector embeddings and semantic search.

Dense Retrieval

A retrieval method that uses dense vector embeddings, enabling semantic search and advanced contextual retrieval.

Document Indexing

The process of organizing and storing documents in a structured format to enable efficient retrieval.

Document Similarity

A measure of how similar two or more documents are based on their content or embeddings.

E
Entities

Specific pieces of information extracted from user input, like names, dates, and products.

Entity Extraction

The process of identifying and classifying key information or data points from user input in a chatbot conversation.

End-to-End Learning

A training approach where a system learns to map inputs directly to outputs, minimizing intermediate steps or feature engineering.

Embeddings

Dense numerical representations of data, such as text or images, used in tasks like semantic search and retrieval.

External Knowledge Bases

Structured or unstructured data repositories used by AI systems to retrieve information and enhance responses.

Embedding Space Alignment

The process of ensuring embeddings from different models or datasets are compatible for comparison or integration.

F
Fallback Response

A default response given by a chatbot when it cannot understand or process the user's input.

Feedback Loop

A mechanism that allows systems to learn from their actions by receiving feedback on their performance.

Fine-Tuning

Adjusting a pre-trained model to perform better on specific tasks or datasets.

Function Calling

AI’s ability to execute specific tasks or functions within a program.

Fine-Tuning Retrievers

The process of adapting retrieval models to specific tasks or datasets by training them on task-relevant examples.

Few-Shot Learning

An approach where AI models are trained to perform tasks with only a few labeled examples.

G
GPT Store

A marketplace for sharing and discovering custom GPTs.

GPT-4 Turbo

An advanced GPT-4 iteration with enhanced speed and performance.

Generative AI

AI systems designed to create new content, such as text, images, or audio, based on learned patterns and input context.

Generative Pretraining

A training phase where AI models learn to predict and generate text based on large-scale datasets.

H
Human-in-the-loop (HITL)

A model where human intervention assists in the decision-making process of an automated system.

Hybrid Search (Dense + Sparse Retrieval)

A search method that combines dense and sparse retrieval techniques to improve accuracy and relevance.

I
Intent Recognition

The ability of a chatbot to understand and identify what a user wants to achieve.

Integration APIs

Set of protocols and tools that allow different software applications to communicate and work together.

Intent Classification

The process of determining the specific goal or purpose behind a user's input in a conversation with a chatbot.

In-Context Learning

A method where models are guided to perform tasks using examples provided in the input prompt.

Index Refreshing

The process of updating retrieval system indices to reflect changes in the underlying data.

J
JSON Mode

A format enabling structured data handling by AI models.

K
Knowledge Base

A centralized repository of information that chatbots or systems use to answer user queries.

Knowledge Retrieval

The process of extracting relevant information from a knowledge base or database, using methods like semantic search and embeddings.

Knowledge-Grounded Generation

A generative AI approach where outputs are grounded in external knowledge sources, such as documents or databases.

Knowledge Distillation

A technique where a smaller model learns from a larger, more complex model, retaining critical knowledge while reducing size.

Knowledge Graphs

Structured representations of information, linking entities and their relationships to facilitate efficient knowledge retrieval.

Knowledge Injection

The process of incorporating external knowledge into AI models to improve performance and accuracy.

Knowledge Cut-Off

The date or point in time after which an AI model does not have knowledge of new events or data.

Knowledge Retrieval Augmentation

A technique that enhances AI model outputs by integrating retrieved knowledge into the generation process.

L
Live Chat

A real-time communication method between customers and support agents or sales representatives via a website or application.

llms.txt File

A standardized markdown file located at the root of a website, designed to provide large language models (LLMs) with concise, structured information about the site’s content.

M
Machine Learning (ML)

A subset of AI that allows systems to learn and improve from experience without being explicitly programmed.

Multimodal Interaction

Interactions involving multiple modes or channels of communication, such as voice, text, and visuals.

Middleware

Software layers that offer services and capabilities between the chatbot platform and external systems or databases.

Model Training

The process by which machine learning models learn from data.

Multimodal Capabilities

The ability of AI to understand and generate different data types like text and images.

Memory Augmentation

A method where external memory modules or databases are integrated with AI systems to enhance their knowledge and context retention.

Multi-Turn Dialogue with Retrieval

A conversational AI approach where retrieval systems provide relevant information for multi-turn interactions.

N
Natural Language Processing (NLP)

A branch of AI that deals with the interaction between computers and human language.

Neural Network

Computing systems inspired by the structure and functioning of the human brain.

Negative Sampling in Retrieval

A training technique where irrelevant data points are sampled to improve the performance of retrieval models.

Neural Retrieval

A retrieval method that uses deep learning models to generate embeddings and match queries with documents.

O
Omnichannel

A multi-channel approach to sales or customer service that provides an integrated and cohesive customer experience.

Open-Domain Question Answering

A task where AI systems answer questions using information retrieved from a wide range of unstructured data sources.

P
Payload

A specific piece of data or instruction sent by a chatbot or received by it to trigger a certain action.

Pattern Matching

A technique where chatbots recognize specific patterns in user input to generate responses.

Pre-trained Models

Machine learning models that have been previously trained on large datasets and can be fine-tuned or adapted for specific tasks.

Privacy Controls

Options for users to manage their data and how it's used by AI models.

Passage Retrieval

A retrieval technique that identifies specific passages within documents to answer user queries effectively.

Prompt Engineering

The practice of designing effective prompts to guide AI models in generating desired responses.

Pretrained Language Models (PLMs)

AI models that are pre-trained on large datasets to understand and generate human language effectively.

Q
Question Answering (QA)

An AI application that provides accurate and context-aware answers to user queries based on a knowledge base or retrieved data.

R
Response Generation

The process by which AI systems produce replies or actions in response to user input.

Reinforcement Learning

A type of machine learning where models learn to make decisions through trial and error.

Reproducible Outputs

The consistency of AI in generating the same results under the same conditions.

Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG)

A framework that combines retrieval and generation to produce responses grounded in external knowledge, leveraging techniques like dense retrieval and knowledge retrieval.

Retrieval-based Models

AI models that rely on retrieving relevant information, often using techniques like sparse retrieval or dense retrieval, rather than generating responses from scratch.

Retriever-Generator Framework

A framework combining retrieval and generation models to produce accurate, context-rich responses.

Retriever Encoder

A model component used to encode queries and documents into embeddings for retrieval tasks.

Retrieval Latency

The time it takes for a retrieval system to fetch relevant information in response to a query.

Retrieval Augmentation Pipeline

A system that combines retrieval and generation processes to enhance AI model outputs with relevant knowledge.

Retrieval Fusion

A technique that combines results from multiple retrieval methods to improve relevance and accuracy.

RAG Tokenization

A tokenization method optimized for retrieval-augmented generation to balance efficiency and accuracy.

S
Session

A single interaction or series of interactions between a user and a chatbot during a specific timeframe.

Sentiment Analysis

A technique used to determine the sentiment or emotion expressed in a piece of text.

Slot Filling

A technique used in conversational AI to gather specific pieces of information from the user.

Scripted Responses

Pre-defined replies or messages that a chatbot uses in specific scenarios or for certain user inputs.

Speech to Text

A technology that converts spoken language into written text.

Safety Mitigations

Measures to prevent misuse of GPTs and ensure ethical usage.

Sparse Retrieval

A retrieval method that uses traditional term-matching techniques, such as TF-IDF or BM25, to find relevant documents.

Semantic Search

A search method that uses embeddings to understand the meaning behind queries and documents, enhancing retrieval relevance.

T
Training Data

Data used to teach and refine machine learning models.

Turing Test

A test of a machine's ability to exhibit intelligent behavior indistinguishable from that of a human.

Threshold

A predefined limit or value that determines specific actions or outcomes based on comparison with incoming data.

Text to Speech

A technology that converts written text into audible speech.

Transformer Models

A machine learning architecture used primarily in the field of natural language processing (NLP).

Text-to-Speech (TTS)

Technology that converts digital text into spoken voice output.

Token Embeddings

Vector representations of individual tokens, such as words or subwords, used in language models.

U
Utterance

Any input or phrase that a user communicates to a chatbot during a conversation.

Updated GPT-3.5 Turbo

A new iteration of GPT-3.5 with expanded capabilities and improved efficiency.

V
Voice Assistant

A digital assistant that uses voice recognition to interpret and respond to user commands.

Vector Databases

Databases designed to store and query high-dimensional vector embeddings for tasks like semantic search and dense retrieval.

W
Webhooks

Automated messages sent from apps when something happens.

Widget

A small software component that provides a specific functionality, often used to integrate chatbots into websites or apps.

Z
Zero-Shot Learning

A machine learning approach where models perform tasks without having seen labeled examples for those tasks during training.

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