du and Unified Inbox (UIB) have entered into a strategic partnership to bring a new and secure way for users to communicate with du without downloading another app or using a separate web-based service. The announcement is in line with du’s long standing association with the Dubai Future Accelerators (DFA).
“Our association with the DFA gives us the agility to bring innovative solutions to our customers today. In line with the recent UAE artificial intelligence strategy made by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, we are already able to support our government in its Vision for 2021 and beyond,” said Samer Geissah, Vice President, Innovation, du.
Under the directive of the UAE leadership, the DFA fosters innovation and collaboration at its incubation centre in Emirates Towers to ensure that issues are resolved more efficiently. The association with DFA has enabled du to further its investment in the entrepreneur community and facilitate a knowledge sharing environment, putting innovation into action in the UAE.
In line with this association, du and UIB will integrate UIB’s artificial intelligence (AI) messaging capabilities in du’s network, allowing users to benefit from UIB’s UnificationEngine, an AI-powered internet of things (IoT) messaging platform. Customers will not only be able to communicate with du’s customer care and services but can eventually also control the devices in their smart homes and offices via a text and/or voice messaging on the channels of their choice including WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Skype, WeChat and many others.
Another feature of this technology will be the option for customers to avail various offers based on their location/time or on demand by simply chatting with du. The service will be available in English and Arabic with the option of adding more languages in the future.
UIB was recently selected to participate in Dubai Future Accelerators’ third cohort, where it is working directly with du and alongside other government bodies.
“We are excited to be the first ones to introduce this revolutionary technology in the UAE which will help both our individual and enterprise customers. Our vision is to allow customers to ask us anything through their preferred way of communications such as WhatsApp, and together with UIB, it will become a reality for our users to communicate with us and also control their smart devices via simple messaging in their preferred platform and language,” added Mr Geissah.
Using AI with Machine Learning (ML) and Natural Language Processing (NLP), UIB will be developing a dedicated assistant for du’s customers that will cater to all their needs. The choice of channel and language, whether text or voice, along with no need for a separate app will save time, increase loyalty, and most importantly, build ‘conversational relationships’ with du’s customers.
“We are very happy to be working with du, one of the world’s most innovative and customer-oriented consumer and business brands. We will be working very hard to ensure du’s customers are able to enjoy easy access to all of their services and devices without the need for separate apps, calls, or web services. Our focus is to enable du’s customers to chat with du as easily as they chat with their friends, on their favorite social media, messaging, and chat platforms,” added Toby Ruckert, CEO, UIB.
