Generating chat bots from web API specifications
Automatic generation of a chat bot from an API specification to carry out a dialogue with a user and invoke an API call described in the API specification. Based on input API specification, a conversational bot specification representing a dialog flow is constructed. A natural language expression is received and transformed into instructions based on the conversational bot specification. Based on the instructions, a natural language prompt to the user and executable computer code for invoking the API call may be generated.
1. A computer-implemented method of automatically generating a conversational bot for an application programming interface (API), comprising:
receiving an API specification associated with an API, the API specification specifying at least information associated with invoking an API call;
based on parsing the API specification, generating dynamically a dialog flow for a conversational bot to carry out with a user in natural language to conduct a natural language dialog with a user for facilitating a use of the API, wherein the conversational bot's dialog flow that is dynamically created can be different based on receiving a different API specification; and
based on a dialog carried out with the user in natural language and the API specification, causing the conversational bot to invoke the API.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the invoking the API includes at least executing a hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) call to a service endpoint providing a service associated with the API.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the API specification includes at least a web API specification.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the method further including at least allowing the conversation bot to carry out the dialog flow with the user.
5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising constructing a conversational bot specification based on the API specification.
6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the constructing the conversational bot specification includes at least constructing a finite state machine (FSM) including at least a plurality of states and state transitions, the finite state machine specifying the dialogue flow for the conversational bot.
7. The method of claim 5 , wherein the conversational bot specification includes at least invoking multiple API calls, wherein the multiple API calls are invoked in a single dialogue.
8. A computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium having program instructions embodied therewith, the program instructions executable by a device to cause the device to:
receive an API specification associated with an API, the API specification specifying at least information associated with invoking an API call;
based on parsing the API specification, generate dynamically a dialog flow for a conversational bot to carry out with a user in natural language to conduct a natural language dialog with a user for facilitating a use of the API, wherein the conversational bot's dialog flow that is dynamically created can be different based on receiving a different API specification; and
based on a dialog carried out with the user in natural language and the API specification, cause the conversational bot to invoke the API.
9. The computer program product of claim 8 , wherein the conversational bot is caused to invoke the API by at least executing a hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) call to a service endpoint providing a service associated with the API.
10. The computer program product of claim 8 , wherein the API specification includes at least a web API specification.
11. The computer program product of claim 8 , wherein the device is further caused to construct a conversational bot specification based on the API specification.
12. The computer program product of claim 11 , wherein constructing the conversational bot specification includes at least constructing a finite state machine (FSM) including at least a plurality of states and state transitions, the finite state machine specifying the dialogue flow for the conversational bot.
13. The computer program product of claim 11 , wherein the conversational bot specification includes at least invoking multiple API calls, wherein the multiple API calls are invoked in a single dialogue.
14. A system comprising:
a hardware processor;
a memory device operably coupled to the hardware processor;
the hardware processor operable to at least:
receive an API specification associated with an API, the API specification specifying at least information associated with invoking an API call;
based on parsing the API specification, generate dynamically a dialog flow for a conversational bot to carry out with a user in natural language to conduct a natural language dialog with a user for facilitating a use of the API, wherein the conversational bot's dialog flow that is dynamically created can be different based on receiving a different API specification; and
based on a dialog carried out with the user in natural language and the API specification, cause the conversational bot to invoke the API.
15. The system of claim 14 , wherein the conversational bot is caused to invoke the API by at least executing a hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) call to a service endpoint providing a service associated with the API.
16. The system of claim 14 , wherein the API specification includes at least a web API specification.
17. The system of claim 14 , wherein the hardware processor is further operable to construct a conversational bot specification based on the API specification.
18. The system of claim 17 , wherein the hardware processor is operable to construct the conversational bot specification at least by constructing a finite state machine (FSM) including at least a plurality of states and state transitions, the finite state machine specifying the dialogue flow for the conversational bot.
19. The system of claim 14 , wherein the conversational bot specification includes at least invoking multiple API calls, wherein the multiple API calls are invoked in a single dialogue.