Technically HR: Amazon Q is AI aimed to aid employees at work

In Star Trek, the extra-dimensional being, Q, challenges crews of the starship Enterprise and other Starfleet vessels using immense, almost omnipotent power, not quite comprehensible by us mere humans. Luckily, back here on Earth, Q is the name of a new generative-AI powered chatbot from Amazon, perhaps still very powerful and a little perplexing, but hopefully less scary than its fictional namesake.

Last week, the cloud giant released Q, which is designed specifically for businesses. The chatbot is meant to help employees answer work-related questions, generate content, and take actions that are specific to the customer business.

“Generative AI has the potential to spur a technological shift that will reshape how people do everything from searching for information and exploring new ideas to writing and building applications,” said AWS’s VP of data and AI, Swami Sivasubramanian, in a statement.

Q has plans costing between $20–$25 per month per user. However, users can preview the tech’s capabilities for free during its preview period. The tool connects with more than 25 external applications including SharePoint, Teams, and Oracle, among others.

Amazon contends that because its chatbot tool was designed for AWS customers, it’s more secure than, for example, ChatGPT, which companies are modifying for customers after the fact. Amazon Q does not use business customers’ content to train its underlying models.

“We think Q has the potential to become a work companion for millions and millions of people in their worklife,” Adam Selipsky, the chief executive of AWS, told the New York Times.

Zoom out. This latest entry into the generative AI landscape comes with business specifically in mind.

Q joins tech like OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Google’s Bard, and Microsoft’s Copilot in transforming how we do everything…including work.

All year, companies have grappled with how to address woes related to ethically and safely using the tech, including how to protect and secure proprietary and personal information.

With Q, perhaps more companies will live long and prosper.