Accelerated information search in a complex company

In a complex company like IAV, with numerous customers, projects, standards and locations, there are also numerous solutions for storing knowledge. The problem: some employees wonder where best to store knowledge, while others don't know where to look. The IAV Wisdom Bot is a solution that summarizes the required information immediately in response to a simple request and provides corresponding links. 

"Our goal is to give all employees access to IAV's extensive knowledge", says Robert Mayer, project manager of the IAV Wisdom Bot. The bot adapts to the individual needs and skills of the user: a colleague with no IT knowledge, for example, receives a simplified answer, while IT specialists receive information using technical vocabulary.

Insight into the IAV Wisdom Bot

IAV Wisdom Bot can be used via MS Teams, the standard software at IAV. Users receive a summary as well as links to the original sources. The knowledge sources from which the bot can draw are numerous and varied. Images and files can be uploaded to the bot for analysis. Another important milestone is the legal protection of the bot, including confidential data, so that employees can use the bot securely for professional purposes.

Positive impact on information gathering in the company

IAV Wisdom Bot changes and accelerates the way knowledge is shared in the company. Information can be accessed centrally, eliminating the need for time-consuming searches in IAV systems and significantly accelerating the process of gathering information.

Robert Mayer explains: "Using AI in engineering requires trust in the new colleague – a trust that comes from knowledge and personal experience. This is exactly what we are promoting with IAV Wisdom Bot." 

‘Hi AI’ campaign: getting to know the new ‘employee’

The introduction of the IAV Wisdom Bot is accompanied by the ‘Hi AI’ campaign, which focuses on IT cultural measures related to digitalization. The aim is not only to provide a new service, but also to change our work culture in the long term. The team is already working on marketing this unique service externally. "We use the bot ourselves for 6,500 employees, continuously operate and develop it – and can share our experiences directly", says Robert Mayer.

Trust and data protection through personalized data management

As in a real workforce, trust plays a central role in the IAV Wisdom Bot. Users can decide for themselves which personal data they want to use for requests. A role and rights management system ensures that the data of both IAV employees and customers is protected. Via an online platform, users can actively participate in further development, contribute their own ideas or express criticism.

Scalable operating model and modern data technology

The implementation of the IAV Wisdom Bot was a challenge that the project team mastered through interdisciplinary cooperation. Technologically, the idea was born in the project business, where initial architectures were developed to integrate Large Language Models (LLMs), RAG and agent systems. The internal IT department focused on a scalable operating model and integration into the existing IT ecosystem. "Today, we are working with a feature roadmap for the coming months in an ongoing team", explains Robert Mayer.

Facts and figures

The service is used by more than 1,000 employees every day and answers around 40,000 queries every week. Information from Sharepoint, Confluence and the intranet is accessed particularly frequently. The main usage time is between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., with a peak around midday.

Conclusion

IAV Wisdom Bot makes modern GenAI technology tangible and accessible to everyone in the company. To achieve this, the project team had to be innovative in terms of technology, legal and process.

"Motivated by our success, we as a company have made a conscious decision to continuously develop the project", says Robert Mayer. 

The employees appreciate the connection to IAV's ‘Hi AI’ cultural program as very successful. In addition, the project team receives a wide range of feedback, from enthusiasm to skepticism about AI, at numerous digitalization events. "Our IT service plays a central role in this by helping to absorb the emotional component through concrete experiences", says Robert Mayer.

We also want to honestly admit one of these experiences: parts of this text were created using our IAV Wisdom Bot.