Resumen
Intelligent agents in the form of personable characters interact with and serve human customers. Like their human counterparts in the real world, interactive characters will soon play helpful roles, enabling customers of Web enterprises to do the things they go to Web sites to do. They will make it easy for people to interact with them through natural forms of conversation and gesture. They will add interest and warmth to the online experience through their distinctive personas, projecting images and styles designed to appeal specifically to customers they serve. They will build relationships with customers based on familiarity, affection and trust human counterparts in several important ways. They will be able to exploit the Web's vast information resources. They will deliver desired behavior consistently 24 hours a day, seven days a week. They will scale flexibly in number as needed to give immediate one-to-one service to each and every customer. They will remember important features of past interactions, making customers feel known and valued.