Chatbots: A review of their potential applications in library services

Chatbots are increasingly getting popularity in recent years. It is being predicted that this new technology is going to affect all aspect of human being. Along with its applications in other areas it can also be widely used in the field of Library and Information Science (LIS). In this context this study is an attempt to survey a few available Chatbots globally. The literature review revels that chatbots are not a recent phenomenon. However, it has gained popularity due to latest development of ‘pattern-matching algorithm’ and the intelligence based on the ‘Artificial Intelligence Markup Language.’ These sophisticated chatbots can be widely used in library services not only as a handy reference tool but also in other areas of LIS domain. The study further finds the open source and commercial Chatbots and discusses their potential application in the LIS field. With their huge potential these bots may not replace the librarians and their jobs but can supplements their functions.