ServiceNow Inc on Wednesday said it released a new version of its cloud software with artificial intelligence technology designed to fix practical problems, such as helping users reset forgotten passwords.
ServiceNow, based in Santa Clara, California, and led by former SAP SE Chief Executive Officer Bill McDermott, makes software used by large companies to handle requests for help to their information technology departments, among other uses.
The newest version of its software, called "Orlando," aims to use artificial intelligence to ease common tasks, company officials said.
For example, if an employee needs to reset a password to access human resources software, the person can talk to a virtual assistant in the ServiceNow system that can ask a few questions and reset the password automatically. The system uses a technology called natural language processing to understand the request, said Dave Wright, ServiceNow's chief innovation officer.
"You only need to have that one conversation - you don't need to know how to change your password for 20 different systems," Wright told Reuters in an interview.
Wright said the software is also designed to make it easier to ask for help from IT departments using a mobile app. The system can be used to file a request about a broken computer using a smart phone, letting the employee upload a picture of the broken computer and connect with an IT agent via video to try to fix it.
"As a (business) user coming in and asking for something, it should feel much more like a consumer experience," Wright said.
Customers of ServiceNow's software include Nike Inc, Adobe Inc, International Business Machines' Red Hat unit and SAP.
(Reporting by Stephen Nellis in San Francisco; Editing by Leslie Adler)
