The era of returning from a weeklong vacation and getting lost in endless Slack threads to catch up with colleagues is now a thing of the past, according to Slack. The advancement attributed to generative AI is revolutionizing this experience. Slack, acquired by Salesforce for $28 billion in 2020, has joined the league of business tools incorporating generative AI capabilities. As of Wednesday, Slack introduces AI-generated summaries for conversations and entire channels, alongside an AI-powered search tool facilitating efficient information retrieval within the vast sea of messages.
Noah Weiss, Slack’s chief product officer, estimates that the average user can reclaim 97 minutes per week through these new features. This initiative follows Salesforce’s initial hint about enhancing Slack with AI functionalities almost a year ago. Denise Dresser, the third CEO post-Salesforce acquisition, shared her positive experience utilizing AI-powered features to streamline her onboarding process and prepare for crucial customer interactions.
The introduction of generative AI tools as a supplementary feature to existing Slack subscriptions is a strategic move. While the exact pricing remains undisclosed, companies are encouraged to consult their Slack representatives for details. Comparable generative AI offerings from competitors like Microsoft and Salesforce have come with substantial price tags, raising concerns about affordability, trustworthiness, and security, thereby impeding widespread adoption.
Dresser emphasizes that these tools aim to unlock valuable employee insights embedded in Slack’s unstructured conversational data, offering a unique perspective beyond structured databases. Despite encountering challenges like “hallucination” during the development phase, Slack ensures the accuracy of its summaries by providing specific message citations. The AI search tool not only offers concise answers but also presents corroborating threads for further exploration.
Users can opt for automated summaries of the past week’s conversations or define a custom date range for summarization. The thread summary condenses lengthy discussions into brief paragraphs, enhancing efficiency. Weiss, with eight years at Slack, reflects on the founders’ vision of leveraging AI to extract insights from message archives, a vision now realized with advancements in technology.
Looking ahead, Slack plans to integrate with Salesforce’s Einstein Copilot generative AI product, enabling teams to leverage AI for diverse tasks within Slack itself. This integration will empower users to create analytic dashboards, customer storefronts, and sales strategies seamlessly within the Slack environment, fostering enhanced productivity and collaboration.
