Cyber Monday Sale! 50% Off All Access

Facebook's Latest Path to World Domination: Chatbots 'You'll never have to call 1-800-Flowers again,' Mark Zuckerberg said.

By Reuters

This story originally appeared on Reuters

Facebook
Mark Zuckerberg

Facebook Inc. said on Tuesday it will allow developers to build chatbots inside its Messenger app to enable users to communicate with businesses directly in its latest effort to dominate enterprise transactions and customer service.

The chatbots expedite Facebook's moves to build out Messenger as the go-to place for users to contact businesses rather than through third-party websites and 1-800 lines.

Related: How to Create a Facebook Messenger Chatbot For Free Without Coding

"You'll never have to call 1-800-Flowers again," Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg said during a demonstration of how the chatbots will work.

At the company's annual developer conference in San Francisco, Zuckerberg also announced during his keynote address its live video product, Facebook Live, was open to developers to create new features as Facebook seeks to encourage users to share more original content on the 1.6 billion-person site.

Zuckerberg's address strayed from the normal company news updates by making veiled references to the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign. He referenced comments by Republican frontrunner Donald Trump in particular, saying he heard "fearful voices calling for building walls" and halting immigration.

Related: Top 10 Best Chatbot Platform Tools to Build Chatbots for Your Business

Zuckerberg kicked off the 30-minute keynote by laying out the company's 10-year plan, which included improvements in artificial intelligence, virtual reality and augmented reality.

Last week, Facebook made its biggest push yet in live video by giving the product more prominent placement on its app and rolling out features that make it easier to create and find video. It is also paying celebrities and media companies to supply video in order to get Live off to a quick start and take on rivals such as Twitter Inc.'s Periscope and Snapchat.

Messenger last week rolled out Messenger Codes, allowing users to scan a code to begin a chat with a business and making it easier to carry out transactions and customer service through the app. Facebook said more than 50 million businesses have pages.

Such features will let Messenger users carry out tasks such as making restaurant reservations, placing online orders and scheduling appointments, a move that threatens call service centers and traditional customer service lines.

(Reporting By Yasmeen Abutaleb; Editing by Meredith Mazzilli)

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Starting a Business

Starting a Nonprofit Business

If you have a passion for a cause, starting a nonprofit could be for you.

Business News

'Pre-Boarding Scam': Customers Furious at Southwest Airlines After 20 Passengers Ask For Wheelchair Assistance to Board

A viral tweet is slamming the airline's wheelchair policy for boarding and disembarking.

Business News

'Something Previously Impossible': New AI Makes 3D Worlds Out of a Single Image

The new technology allows viewers to explore two-dimensional images in 3D.

Business News

'I Stand By My Decisions': A CEO Is Going Viral For Firing Almost All of the Company's Employees — Here's Why

The Musicians Club CEO Baldvin Oddsson fired 99 workers at once over Slack for missing a morning meeting. But there's a catch.

Business Ideas

63 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2024

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2024.