Yandex has developed a voice AI agent that answers incoming calls and helps users book tables in restaurants or schedule services. The system supports natural dialogue, clarifies order details, checks the availability of the chosen time, and confirms the appointment. If there are no available slots, the agent offers alternative options, and if necessary, connects the client with an employee.
The solution is based on Yandex's proprietary Alice AI LLM language model, as well as speech recognition and synthesis technologies. This allows the system to quickly process requests and conduct conversations with minimal delays.
Currently, the AI agent is undergoing testing in restaurants that are partners of Yandex Eda. According to the company, in 99% of cases, the system correctly processed requests: it filtered spam, independently processed bookings, or transferred calls to staff. Some establishments also noted an increase in the number of bookings, with about half of the appointments during testing being made outside working hours.
In the future, Yandex plans to use the technology in other areas where phone booking remains in demand, including medical clinics, beauty salons, fitness centers, and car services.