Blog Cast is a feature I've built on Sitecore Cognitive Services that allows you to convert text to audio using Microsoft's Speech API. This can basically turns your blog into a podcast. Obviously it's not the author reading the article. A machine voice is reading the text but the voice is pretty advanced. It's also a nearly effortless way to expand the surface of consumable content for your audience allowing them to continue to consume your content 'on the go'. To get started there's a few videos to get you started:
For those of you who don't know what Ole [oh-la] is, it is a chat bot for use within the backend of Sitecore. Some of the key features:
If that's not enough of a reason for you to try it, then just consider it's using cutting edge Microsoft machine learning technology!
For a few years now I've been pushing the idea of using machine learning to rethink how we build websites. Today I've got more good news. In yet another example, we can now get a lot closer to building a google like search experience for all the Sitecore sites we build. The sample project I've put together to demonstrate this is called "Intelligent Search" and is built on top of the Sitecore Cognitive Services "Core" and uses Microsoft's LUIS to parse input questions for a search form to answer common domain specific questions as well as engage in conversations with the user.
Are you ready to add cloud based machine learning APIs to your Sitecore solution? Then save yourself some time and use Sitecore Cognitive Services.
What is it, you ask? It's a series of .NET API connectors (the core) and new features built on that core. It's open source and available on GitHub or Nuget. You can use what's there, improve on them or even build your own using the existing ones a model.
At a high level machine learning is really defined as an algorithms that allows a machine to learn (or continually learn) from a set of information and use that 'knowledge' to provide a relatively accurate answer about similar data. The more data you provide the more accurate it will become. The real power is that it won't need an infinitely large set of information to begin to be useful. Some is good. More is better. Eventually it’s good enough.
I'm excited to announce the release of the cognitive services I've been working on for the last year as marketplace modules. I present to you the Cognitive Core, the Image Search and Ole Chat. Of all the ideas it generated, being able to polish up two into pretty practical modules was really satisftying.
For a few years now I've been working to raise awareness how machine learning could be used with Sitecore to make web applications a much more powerful experience. I've built an integration between Sitecore and Microsoft's Cognitive Services named Sitecore Cognitive Services.
What are Microsoft's Cognitive Services? In the not too distant past, Microsoft released a number of web services using machine learning to the general public under the banner of 'Cognitive Services'.
I'm now watching mountains drift beneath the wing of my plane (sunglasses on). I'm leaving Las Vegas richer not poorer. You could say, I've just had quite an amazing Sitecore Experience (wink).
I've more recently released a video recap of the presentation I gave to the New England Sitecore User Group.
You've unlocked a door with a key of imagination. Beyond it is another dimension. A dimension of clouds. A dimension of sites. A dimension of mind. You're moving into a land of both shadow and substance, of things and ideas. You've just crossed over into, the Sitecore zone. (shocking music)