Watch all the Transform 2020 sessions on-demand here.
Skype users can now discover bots on the Skype iOS app more easily, Microsoft announced today.
You can now find bots to chat with on the messaging app just by tapping on the bot icon with a plus sign next to it in the top right corner of the display. Before, you had to go to the contacts page, hit Add Contact, and toggle to the Bots section to the right of the People section.
Also included in version 6.20 of Skype: The ability to favorite bots like you favorite friends. From the chat, just tap on the name of the bot and tap “Add to favorites.”
Above: Skype version 6.20 update screenshot. Credit: Microsoft
That isn’t the only update to the app.
June 5th: The AI Audit in NYC
Join us next week in NYC to engage with top executive leaders, delving into strategies for auditing AI models to ensure fairness, optimal performance, and ethical compliance across diverse organizations. Secure your attendance for this exclusive invite-only event.
“We’ve also improved on notification reliability and made sure that muted conversations will no longer appear in your unread message count,” the Skype team said in a blog post. “We’ve also listened to your feedback and updated the voice messaging experience.”
Microsoft has made many moves in recent months to make Skype accommodate bots since CEO Satya Nadella declared that bots would become a larger part of the company’s future.
In March, after the creation of the Microsoft Bot Framework, Skype introduced services for developers. Microsoft has since merged the Skype Bot Platform with the Microsoft Bot Framework.
In April, Skype bots were made available on Mac desktop and web clients following the initial release on iOS, Android, and Windows.
Skype’s available bots include Ava Zoom, Mitsuku, CaptionBot, Murphy, the Hello Stranger game, Hello Stranger 2, Bing Music, Bing News, Bing Images, Summarize, and Getty Images.
Earlier this month, Skype enabled bots to work in groups and respond to multiple users at one time. Cards and carousels were added to highlight images and videos.
