Wiliot Launches WiliBot: The AI Chatbot Bringing Conversational Intelligence to Retail Products

Wiliot has unveiled WiliBot, a generative AI (GenAI) chatbot designed to facilitate natural language interactions with ambient IoT-connected products. This innovative technology allows companies to engage in real-time conversations with their products and supply chains, answering queries such as shelf life, product origins, stock recommendations, safety, and carbon footprint.

"Ambient IoT and generative AI are increasingly symbiotic technologies," said Wiliot CEO Tal Tamir. "Ambient IoT generates extensive data about everyday items, while GenAI makes sense of that data. Conversely, GenAI learns by analyzing large datasets. Ambient IoT introduces massive new physical world datasets that platforms like WiliBot can use to describe and manage products, materials, and supply chains."

Wiliot's Ambient Data Platform employs stamp-sized, self-powered IoT pixels attached to various items, including products, packaging, and pallets. These IoT pixels communicate information such as location, temperature, humidity, and carbon footprint via Bluetooth to the Wiliot cloud, where businesses can analyze the data.

Wiliot's AI and machine learning algorithms identify supply chain events and generate alerts or responses to optimize operations. For example, the system can detect when shipments of produce or pharmaceuticals are exposed to unsafe temperatures and notify businesses accordingly.

"Our work in generative AI is relatively new, but Wiliot has long been a pioneer in AI and machine learning for ambient IoT data," Tamir added. "As more companies adopt our Ambient Data Platform, we are excited to integrate GenAI capabilities through WiliBot, merging ambient IoT with AI."

Currently, Wiliot is piloting WiliBot with key enterprise customers, with a wider rollout expected in late 2024 and into 2025. During this pilot phase, businesses will use WiliBot to inquire about their ambient IoT-enabled products and supply chains. Future plans include making this technology available to consumers through mobile apps, allowing them to interact with products in-store and at home to learn about their carbon footprint, material composition, and ethical sourcing.

Wiliot's innovation has already been recognized; the company was highly commended in the supply chain category at the 2023 RTIH Innovation Awards, held at the Barbican Centre in London on November 29.