Salesforce has released an updated Slackbot, powered by Anthropic’s Claude model, for Business+ and Enterprise+ Slack subscribers to organize communications and locate information within Slack and other services. The company expects the new functionality to reduce reliance on external AI tools and to drive user migration from competing platforms such as Microsoft Teams.
The updated Slackbot became available Tuesday, following an October announcement of plans to integrate generative AI into the virtual assistant. This AI-powered Slackbot uses Anthropic’s Claude model, though Salesforce is exploring alternative models. Salesforce acquired Slack in 2021 for $27.1 billion, marking its largest purchase on record.
Salesforce co-founder and technology chief Parker Harris stated that the new Slackbot helps with meeting preparation and topic research, reducing the need for traditional search functions. He reported that the integrated AI respects user permissions and access controls, only accessing data visible to the user within conversations, files, channels, and contacts. The system can connect with data in Slack, Salesforce, Google Drive, Box, and Atlassian’s Confluence.
Despite the broader AI sector’s growth, Salesforce’s stock price has declined 18% in the past year, in contrast to the Nasdaq’s 24% gain over the same period. Harris dismissed concerns that large language models and coding agents are disrupting cloud software or that services like OpenAI’s ChatGPT would integrate directly into corporate systems. Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff commented that agent-based systems are replacing older client service software.
Video: Slack
Salesforce has also been selling Agentforce services to automate customer service functions. Meanwhile, other technology companies, including Google and Microsoft, have integrated AI add-ons into their work productivity suites. Since its launch in 2014, Slackbot has provided automated messages and third-party updates, but Slack has been a relative laggard in AI integration since the introduction of chatbots following ChatGPT’s release in late 2022.
A Salesforce spokesperson reported that millions of individuals across thousands of organizations use Slack, which is one of the company’s fastest-growing cloud offerings. Harris stated that the new Slackbot is the most quickly adopted feature in Salesforce’s 27-year history.
Demetri Salvaggio, vice president of customer experience and operations at Engine, a business travel software company, reported that using the new Slackbot saves him 45 minutes to an hour weekly. Engine holds licenses for Google’s Gemini assistant and Anthropic’s Claude, but these are not embedded within the company’s Slack environment.
In leadership changes, OpenAI hired former Slack CEO Denise Dresser as its chief revenue officer in December. Rob Seaman, Slack’s former product chief, became the unit’s interim CEO.
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