July 24, 2025
Chatbot vs Virtual Assistant: What's the Difference?
Need a helping hand with your customer support? In this day and age, there’s no shortage of tech-based solutions – but generative AI is changing the game.
Gen AI tools help businesses scale customer support by handling high volumes of inquiries (even simultaneously). Two of the most popular options are AI chatbots and AI virtual assistants. Exploring their key features and unique selling points helps you make them work for your business.
What are AI chatbots? 🤖
AI chatbots are software programs built to have real-time conversations with users via chat windows on websites and in apps. Here’s how it looks on this very website:
Powered by artificial intelligence and natural language processing (NLP), chatbots answer questions, solve problems, and standardize routine tasks.
The most advanced chatbot solutions use natural language understanding (NLU) to interpret intent and context, making replies feel more relevant and human. With built-in machine learning (ML), they also improve their output over time by learning from interactions, adapting to patterns, allowing them to handle more complex queries with greater accuracy.
Chatbot features
AI chatbots boast a wide range of features, from automation and personalization to sentiment analysis and multichannel coverage. This makes chatbots a super effective way to reach customers through their preferred channels and (hopefully) support them on the path to purchase.
👉Task automation: Top-performing chatbots don’t just chat; they help you get stuff done. From changing account details to resetting passwords, they can handle repetitive tasks smoothly, saving your team time and reducing the risk of mistakes.
👉Bespoke replies: By learning from user data – such as previous orders and account activity – chatbots can serve up responses that feel more relevant and less robotic.
👉Context awareness: No one likes starting over so smarter chatbots remember past interactions. For example, if a user leaves mid-chat, they can pick it up again later, right where they left off.
👉Omnichannel presence: Whether someone messages you on your website, app, or even social media, the experience should feel seamless. The best chatbots work across multiple channels, helping you reach and engage customers via their preferred platforms.
👉Multilingual support: If your audience speaks more than one language, your chatbot should too. Multilingual bots help you connect with more people without relying on clunky translation tools.
👉Sentiment analysis: Some chatbots can pick up on tone and mood in messages. If things get heated or emotional, they can respond more carefully and/or transfer the chat to a real human.
👉System integrations: Want to make your bot even more useful? Make sure it connects with the tools you already use, such as your CRM, helpdesk, and order management system. That way, it can fetch real-time information and act on it.
What are AI virtual assistants? 🧑💻
In a customer support context, AI virtual assistants are digital tools designed to resolve customer issues through conversation. Whereas chatbots often deal with FAQs, virtual assistants can manage more complex, multi-step tasks – such as scheduling meetings, pulling reports, and coordinating task sequences across different platforms. They use NLP to understand what the customer is asking, responding in a way that feels more like a real assistant than a bot.
AI virtual assistant features
Like chatbots, AI virtual assistants offer extensive features, covering everything from personalization to automation to the ability to handle conversations across multiple channels. And with built-in predictive analytics, your AI virtual assistant can even deliver proactive support – such as reminding customers about upcoming appointments.
👉Personalization: Virtual assistants get to know your customers over time based on their previous interactions and order history. Thanks to ML and NLP, they can create customer experiences that feel personalized to each individual user.
👉Smart conversations: Virtual assistants can communicate via text or voice – whatever works best for your audience. They’re not tied to just one app either; they can jump across platforms, helping wherever you need.
👉Robotic process automation: Your virtual assistant can handle repetitive, labor-intensive customer support tasks like updating customer records and processing orders, allowing your employees to focus on higher-value tasks.
👉Predictive analytics: Advanced virtual assistants anticipate customer needs using predictive analytics, allowing them to provide proactive support. This might include sharing personalized product recommendations or sending reminders about upcoming appointments.
What are the differences between chatbots and virtual assistants?💡
Although they perform similar roles, there are some key differences between chatbots and virtual assistants. Understanding these will help you make an informed choice about which solution is best for you.
Area | Chatbots | Virtual assistants |
Intelligence | Often follow set scripts or rules to respond to common queries. | Understand intent and handle more complex interactions. |
Functionality | Great for handling quick tasks like FAQs, order updates, and basic support. | Go beyond support by managing calendars, setting reminders, suggesting next steps, and streamlining processes. |
User interface | Mostly text-based with buttons or menus to guide users through support options. | Can work via text or voice, providing greater flexibility and delivering more natural interactions. |
Adaptability | Limited ability to change or learn; may require manual updates to improve. | Learn from previous experiences and adapt to users over time. |
Contextual awareness | May treat chats as standalone events without remembering past interactions. | Keep track of conversations and context, making light work of multi-step tasks. |
Use cases | Best for high-volume, repetitive tasks and handling basic queries. | Ideal for day-to-day task management, proactive assistance, and cross-platform productivity support. |
Functionality
Understanding how virtual assistants and chatbots function can help you understand how each tool can fit your business. While they both leverage automation to boost customer support performance, their scope, depth, and flexibility differ. Before deciding on a tool, consider how it would support your customers, integrate into your systems, and aid the daily operations of your business.
Chatbots
Chatbots are built for straightforward, task-based interactions – ideal for answering FAQs or guiding users through a set process. They’re great for tasks like order tracking and appointment booking. Chatbots follow predefined paths and provide consistent, reliable support at scale.
AI virtual assistants
AI virtual assistants can handle more complex tasks thanks to advanced NLP and ML. They adapt to user needs, manage workflows, and support multi-step, context-rich interactions. While multitasking can be tough for human support agents, virtual assistants can easily switch contexts and perform actions based on user behaviour. These include reminders, recommendations, and real-time updates.
Customer experience
Customer experience is about how people feel while interacting with your brand. AI tools can play a big role in the type of experience you provide. By speeding up response times, creating smoother customer journeys, and providing data-backed support, the right tech makes every touchpoint feel more valuable and human (even when no humans are involved).
Chatbots
By delivering instant, relevant responses around the clock, AI chatbots enhance customer experience. They can tailor interactions to user needs by analyzing their behavior. This helps you boost customer engagement and gather valuable insights, enabling better decision-making and service.
AI virtual assistants
AI virtual assistants create highly personalized customer experiences with big data, ML, and deep learning. They remember customer information and context, making for more natural, customized communications. All this, in turn, helps with overall customer satisfaction.
Use cases
Chatbots and virtual assistants can be applied to different business requirements. While both tools can make your business more efficient, their specific roles and capabilities mean they excel in different ways.
Chatbots
Chatbots are best at handling repetitive customer support tasks at scale, such as processing returns and exchanges, answering frequently asked questions, and checking inventory levels. This makes them a good fit for businesses that receive high volumes of calls requiring an immediate (but basic) response.
AI virtual assistants
By integrating with platforms like Slack and Asana, virtual assistants can refine procedures, enhance communication, and increase productivity across your business – not just within your support team. This leads to quicker deal closures and more effective customer support.
Range of tasks
Whether handling interactions or supporting higher-level customer support activities, both chatbots and virtual assistants can handle a wide range of tasks. Understanding what they do and how they work makes it easier to choose the right solution for your business.
Chatbots
Chatbots are well-suited to handling clearly defined, repetitive tasks at speed and scale. They can answer FAQs, check order statuses, update account details, and more. Their task range tends to be structured, so you can manage increasing support requests without having to rely on human-powered services.
AI virtual assistants
Virtual assistants can take on more advanced tasks. These tools might help with sales coaching, sending follow-ups, and collecting information from synced apps. With greater contextual understanding and integration capabilities, they can respond flexibly as your business grows.
Adaptability
Adaptability is essential when choosing AI tools, because you want your chosen tool to adjust on-the-fly to changing requirements. In a fast-moving digital world, you need tools that can easily respond to new information, situations, or user requests. That way, they’ll be more useful to your business in the long run.
Chatbots
AI chatbots can improve over time, such as getting better at recognizing patterns and responding to common issues. However, their adaptability is limited to predefined tasks, like answering FAQs or processing orders. Although they learn from previous interactions, they can’t handle complex or out-of-scope requests that fall outside their programmed functions.
AI virtual assistants
Because AI virtual assistants are smarter than chatbots, they’re also far more adaptable. For instance, many virtual assistants feature built-in speech recognition, allowing them to respond to spoken commands as well as written ones. They’re also able to “remember” a wider range of details about previous interactions, helping them deliver a more personalized service.
AI virtual assistant or chatbot: Which is right for you? ⚖️
While virtual assistants and chatbots can work perfectly well together, most businesses will pick one or the other. After all, you don’t have an unlimited budget for AI tools. Making the right choice is about weighing up factors like business goals, user experience, integrations, and the complexity of interactions you handle.
Business goals 👔
When choosing a tool, consider your future goals and opt for tools that can scale with your business. For instance, if you’re planning to enter more markets and niches down the line, a virtual assistant will be better placed to deliver personalized support across unique audiences with different needs.
User experience 🏆
AI virtual assistants create a more flexible, user-friendly experience, adjusting to different customers in real time. Chatbots, by contrast, are usually built for focused tasks and offer a simpler interaction style, which works well for immediate queries – but can feel limiting in more complex situations.
Complexity of interactions 💬
AI virtual assistants can handle more complex conversations, adapt to different input types, and respond more naturally across platforms. Chatbots usually follow set scripts, which makes them great for simple tasks, but less helpful for more advanced queries requiring lengthy back-and-forth interactions.
Integrations 🔌
Look for tools that plug into the systems your team already uses. Virtual assistants often offer broader integration options spanning multiple functions and departments, allowing them to access information and complete tasks without forcing human agents to jump between platforms. But if you only want your AI solution to handle customer support, it’s not worth paying more for a tool that integrates with everything.
Automation 🔁
Think about how much you want to automate, and where. Chatbots can handle repetitive jobs like approvals or alerts, while AI assistants can analyze your data, spot trends, and even choose the best course of action.
The bottom line
AI chatbots handle repetitive tasks like FAQs and order tracking – plus they use machine learning to improve their output over time. Virtual assistants manage more complex procedures, giving personalized, multi-step support, potentially across multiple platforms. The right choice for you depends on your business goals, task complexity, integrations, and automation needs.
👉 Give an AI virtual assistant a try by signing up for a free Rosie account!
FAQs❓
Are virtual assistants considered AI?
Yes, virtual assistants are considered AI because they use artificial intelligence technologies like natural language processing and machine learning. They understand user requests, respond intelligently, and continuously optimize performance based on previous interactions.
What are the two main types of chatbots?
Chatbots primarily fall into two categories: rule-based and AI-driven. Rule-based chatbots operate on set parameters and predefined scripts, whereas AI chatbots use NLP and ML to interpret and respond to customers more authentically.
What are some future trends in AI-driven automation?
Future trends in AI-driven automation include:
Advanced natural language understanding: AI is becoming increasingly capable of processing human language in real time, allowing AI solutions to generate more relevant, helpful responses.
Increased collaboration between AI and human agents: Rather than replacing humans, AI will help agents work more efficiently and provide more personalized customer experiences.