Nobody likes to wait in long queues. That is why businesses choose conversational AI to efficiently handle customers and manage a high volume of inquiries. IBM Watson is amongst the most popular.
The challenge is that with over 200 conversational AI platforms available, selecting the right one can be overwhelming and no tool is perfect.
In this article, we will evaluate IBM Watson in more details, and look at 5 alternatives that could be better aligned with your business needs.
IBM Watson Review
IBM changed their approach in 2023. From using mere chatbot interface that need to recognize user intent, they introduced the watsonx platform. Watsonx enables partners to train, fine-tune, and deploy models with generative AI and machine learning capabilities. Watsonx was designed to manage the lifecycle of foundation models that power generative AI and facilitate the creation and tuning of machine learning models.
To automate customer interactions, IBM Watson offers:
- AI agent chat: AI agent utilizes large language model-based routing in a unified interface.
- AI assistant builder: Using IBM’s low-code and no-code interfaces you can build & fine-tune chatbots that are can be edited at any time. Also, you can leverage
- Conversational search: It uses Large Language Models (LLMs) with retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) to deliver conversational answers based on your company’s content & feedback. IBM’s Granite model empowers prompt instructions and generative responses within a no-code interface.
Based on IBM’s analysis, its conversational AI platform provides a:
- 370% ROI
- 95% response accuracy
- 24/7 reliability1
Pricing
| Version | Pricing/month | Features |
|---|---|---|
| Lite | Free | – Handles 1,000 users/month – Offers 3 bots – Stores analytics data for 7 days – Holds a 5-minute timeout |
| Plus | $140 | – Handles +1,000 users/month – Offers 10 bots – Stores analytics data for 30 days – Holds a 24-hour session timeout limit |
| Enterprise | Customized | – Handles +50,000 users/month – Offers 30 bots – Stores analytics data for 90 days – Holds a 7-day session timeout limit |
Additional features
Apart from the key features explained under overview section, watsonx also offers:
- Multi-channel support: IBM Watsonx Assistant can deploy across various platforms and channels, such as websites, mobile apps, messaging services, and voice interfaces, providing consistent interactions.
- Integration with enterprise systems: Watsonx Assistant can be integrated with existing enterprise systems like CRM, ERP, and other business tools.
- Customizable dialogs: Users can create complex, dynamic conversational flows, using a visual interface to set up dialogues that guide interactions based feedback.
- Ease of setup: Bots can be created with little programming knowledge
- Wide applicability: Besides human-like conversational interactions, it can execute rule-based tasks
Why look for IBM Watson alternatives?
You should look for IBM Watson alternatives if you
- Find IBM Watson’s pricing to be high
- Want a less data-heavy solution
- Need advanced analytics
We narrowed our search to solutions that matched IBM Watson (i.e. easy to set up, flexible, integrable), but without its shortcomings. Our shortlist for IBM Watson Assistant alternatives are:
- Zoho SalesIQ
- Google Dialogflow
- Haptik
- Kore.ai
- Microsoft Azure Bot Service
1. Zoho SalesIQ
Zoho SalesIQ is a domain-specific platform focused on sales and customer engagement. This all-in-one live chat and analytics solution allows businesses to actively interact with customers and enhance their engagement.
Pricing
| Plan | Price (yearly & monthly) | Key Features Accessible | Plus Features Offered* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | 0 | -3 operator licenses -Visitor insights (10K visitors/month) -100 chat sessions/month | -Basic visitor information -Voice note – Mobile SDK -Integration with Zoho apps |
| Basic | €7 (billed annually) €10 (billed monthly) | -1 operator license -Visitor insights (50K visitors/month) -1000 chat sessions/month -1 chatbot | -Messaging channels -FAQ & Articles -Email signature chat -Third-party integrations |
| Professional | €12.75 (billed annually) €17 (billed monthly) | -1 operator license -Visitor insights (100K visitors/month) -Unlimited chat sessions -5 chatbots | -Custom widgets -Block IP -Weekly and monthly reports -Apple TV app |
| Enterprise | €20 (billed annually) €25 (billed monthly) | -1 operator license -Visitor insights (200K visitors/month) -Unlimited chat sessions -10 chatbots | -Chat translation -NLP driven Answer Bot -Integrations with Cloud Telephony and PBX systems |
Key features
- Real-time visitor tracking: Businesses can access detailed tracking data for visitors, including page views, location, and referral sources, helping them better understand and personalize the customer journey.
- Easy integration with 30+ apps: SalesIQ offers plug-and-play integration with over 30 apps, including Zoho CRM, Zoho Desk, and various third-party tools, enabling businesses to consolidate and analyze customer data on a single platform.
- Resource library (articles, FAQs)
- Contact management (B2C, B2B)
2. Google Cloud Dialogflow
Google Dialogflow can be used to create chatbots, voice assistants, and virtual assistants, all of which can be integrated with different conversational platforms, such as:
- Google Assistant
- Slack
- Telegram
Data scientists can use its no-code interface for:
- Model training
- Designing conversation flows
- Defining intents
Pricing
Google Dialogflow comes in 2 packages, CX agent and ES agent. CX is usable for large companies, ES for small ones.2
CX agent costs $0.007 per text request, the ES agent $0.002. Therefore, to run 16,000 requests/month (the same amount as Haptik offers in their base package), it costs:
- $384 annually for the ES agent
- $1344 annually for the CX agent
Key features
- No-code: Same as other chatbots on our list, Google Dialogflow’s no-code base simplifies bot set up
- Easy to train: Training the chatbot can be straightforward, whereby the generative AI uses the input to create the replies
- Analytics: The visible dashboard provides detailed insights and analytics which helps with the unsupervised running of the bot
- Google integration: including voice and text, across platforms such as Google Assistant, mobile apps, and social media. Integration with additional Google services like Cloud Functions for handling complex workflows and BigQuery for advanced analytics.
3.Haptik
Haptik’s conversational artificial intelligence software offers highly engaging user experiences across numerous industries, and is integrable with:
- Webchat, and more.
Haptik offers:
- Prebuilt conversation workflows
- NLP for automatic speech recognition
- AI-powered live agent assistants for lifelike conversational interactions
- Multilingual assistants
- Campaign bots
- No-code setup
- User dashboard for predictive analysis and predictive analytics
Pricing
Haptik does not publicly share detailed pricing information on its website, as pricing can vary depending on the specific needs and scale of the business, such as the number of users, features, integrations, and support required. Haptik offers:
- Trial and entry-level plans: Haptik may offer entry-level or trial plans for smaller businesses to explore its capabilities
- Custom pricing plans: Based on the complexity of the solution and the number of users or channels, businesses can get custom quotes from Haptik’s sales team.
- Enterprise solutions: For large organizations, Haptik provides enterprise-level solutions.
Key features
- Analytics dashboard: The analytics dashboard offers business insights, usable by data scientists to fine-tune the chatbot
- Simple setup: Haptik’s no-code engine enables a quick and simple setup
- Human handover: The platform enables escalation from AI chatbots to human agents when necessary, ensuring customers are properly assisted in complex or unresolved cases.
- Data-efficient: Users haven’t labelled Haptik as “data-hungry.” It can be run with an “efficient” amount of data fed into it.
4.Kore.ai
Kore.ai is another one of IBM Watson’s top alternatives. Their chatbot and virtual assistants are powered by a no-code, flexible architecture usable by citizen developers and professional programmers alike.
Pricing
Essential Plan
- Price: $29 per agent per month (billed annually).
- Includes features:
- 30+ agents with support for inbound voice and web chat
- queues, voicemail, and real-time queue monitoring.
- Access to the full Academy
- email support
- Add-ons: XO Voice Gateway.
Advanced Plan
- Price: $49 per agent per month (billed annually).
- Offers everything in the Essential plan, plus additional features like:
- support for up to 300 agents
- access to 30+ digital channels, call-back requests, surveys, custom widgets, and 50 custom KPIs for analytics.
- Add-ons: XO Voice Gateway.
Key features
- Data-efficient: Kore.ai can be set up and utilized across multitude of use cases with a small amount of training data.
- Detailed documentation: The trainings and documentation are detailed and easy to learn for users.
- Analytical dashboard: Kore.ai’s dashboard offers detailed data, including the analysis of user sentiment.
5.Microsoft Azure Bot Service
The Azure Bot Service provides cloud-based tools for creating, testing, deploying, and managing intelligent bots across multiple channels, such as web chat, email, and SMS.
Pricing
| Pricing Component | Cost | Key Features |
|---|---|---|
| Standard Channels | Free | Includes web chat, email, and more. |
| Premium Channels | $0.50 per 1,000 messages | Supports SMS, telephony, and other premium channels. |
| Direct Line Speech | $1.50 per 1,000 messages | Voice support with speech recognition capabilities. |
Key features include:
- Multi-channel deployment for bots across web, mobile apps, Microsoft Teams, and social media platforms.
- Bot Framework SDK for developing and customizing bot logic.
- Integration with Azure AI services, like Language Understanding (LUIS), for recognizing user intent.
- Scalable cloud infrastructure designed to handle high volumes of interactions.
For more on chatbots
To learn more about chatbots, read:
- Top 3 Yellow.ai Competitors & Alternatives Detailed Guide
- MSP ChatGPT: Leveraging Conversational AI to Drive Success
- 10 Use Cases of Conversational AI for Customer Service
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