Discord is launching its own AI-powered chatbot

10 Mar 2023

Image: © ImagesRouges/Stock.adobe.com

The platform’s robot assistant Clyde is getting boosted with OpenAI technology, while Discord also plans a range of smaller AI-powered updates.

Social media platform Discord has joined the AI gold rush, with plans to release its own advanced chatbot next week.

Discord said it is updating its current robot assistant, Clyde, with OpenAI technology to give the chatbot AI capabilities. OpenAI is the company behind the hugely popular ChatGPT.

Clyde is currently on the platform to provide assistance for users, such as sending them a message if an error has been detected or responding to basic slash commands.

But from next week, Discord said users will be able to ask questions and have “extended conversations” with Clyde.

Discord VP of platform ecosystems Anjney Midha said the decision to integrate AI onto the platform makes sense as “more than 30m people already use AI apps on Discord every month.”

“Almost 3m Discord servers include an AI experience, ranging from generating gaming assets to groups writing novels with AI, to AI companions, AI companies and AI-based learning communities,” Midha said in a blog post.

Discord said the new chatbot is being designed with a “privacy-first and optional-only approach”, as OpenAI will not be allowed to use its data to train other AI models.

“Clyde is learning interesting and fun new things every day, and we’re excited to continue testing and iterating so Clyde becomes a fundamental part of the Discord experience soon,” Midha said.

Discord also announced several AI-powered updates to improve the platform, such as enhancing its automatic moderating system and providing “AI-generated conversation summaries” for users.

The platform has also updated its $5m ecosystem fund, which it launched last year to fund strategic partners, developers and early-stage start-ups.

Discord said it is launching an AI incubator as part of the fund, to bring resources to developers that want to build AI on the platform.

“We’re excited about the opportunities for AI to enhance so many facets of human experience, and we can’t wait to see what teams around the world come up with over the years to come,” Midha said.

Various companies have started adopting generative AI to enhance their services, including  AmazonMeta and even Salesforce.

Earlier this week, online writing assistant Grammarly announced plans to throw its hat into the generative AI ring. The company plans to roll out an AI-powered service next month to help users with more advanced tasks beyond just grammar help.

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Leigh Mc Gowran is a journalist with Silicon Republic

editorial@siliconrepublic.com