Benzinga | Aug 17, 2020 06:13AM EDT

Hilton Launches AI Customer Service Chatbot

Hilton (NYSE:HLT) today announced the result of a month-long competition for the design of its new AI chatbot cartoon character part of a bid to give "life" to its newly launched AI customer service chatbot with a personable animated avatar. Change Chen from DoubleTree by Hilton Shiyan took the top prize, while Issa Li from Waldorf Astoria Shanghai on the Bund and Vicky Li from Hilton Chengdu took second and third place, respectively. The competition, which was open to all guests and Hilton Team Members, drew extensive attention from the industry, with about 60 percent of designs submitted by Hilton guests.

Since its launch in February, Xiao Xi has replied to more than 50,000 customer inquiries, with a 94 percent customer satisfaction rating, which far surpasses the average performance for a general AI chatbot. At present, Xiao Xi is available 24/7 via Hilton China mobile apps including iOS, Android, and the WeChat Mini Program.

As it pursues its digital innovation strategy, Hilton has remained dedicated to creating exceptional online experiences for guests. To meet their ever-evolving and diverse demands, Hilton has been exploring different channels and platforms that can provide guests with a flawless online experience. Hilton began working with major OTA platforms in China to offer additional online customer services in 2017; launched the Chinese Hilton Honors app in 2018; and opened the Hilton corporate flagship store on Fliggy in 2019. The introduction of Xiao Xi now provides an additional online platform to provide exceptional services to guests.