Talking and listening to fans are important aspects for NBA teams, and now the Kings will be the first in the NBA to take those components to the next technological level.
Taylor Soper of GeekWire recently reported that the Kings have partnered with a startup organization called JiffyBots to incorporate their chatbot technology to communicate with fans about Golden 1 Center.
According to Soper, these chatbots use “artificial intelligence and natural language processing to understand what people need and want.”
These bots will interact with fans to provide them with various information about the new downtown arena.
The NBA just recently launched a chatbot feature through Facebook’s Messenger application to create an easy way for fans to view highlights during the NBA Finals.
Additional organizations such as Facebook, Amazon, Google, and Microsoft have also begun developing similar applications with chatbot technology, Soper noted.
“It’s about personalizing the fan experience and strengthening that bond,” Kings Chief Technology Officer Ryan Montoya told GeekWire.
The chatbots will be implemented leading up to the 2016-17 season, beginning with providing updates via Facebook Messanger about the soon-to-be-opened Golden 1 Center.
“Throughout the entire process designing this arena, we’ve always thought about how we remove friction and barriers from the fan experience,” Montoya said to GeekWire. “With the bot, we’re able to do that with efficient conversations with fans.”
To read the full article from GeekWire, click here.