Yelp is releasing multiple AI-powered updates. These include an updated AI assistant that can answer questions about restaurants, bars, local attractions, and retailers. The company is also adding a new feature that allows users to scan a physical menu to provide information about dishes. Additionally, Yelp is improving search with support for natural language and voice queries. It will also highlight popular offerings on business pages for categories like auto shops, hair salons, clothing stores, and parks.
The company launched an AI-powered assistant last year to help users connect with the right services by describing a problem. Yelp is now using similar technology to answer questions about other kinds of businesses. The assistant uses information from a business’s page, website, reviews, and photos to provide answers. For example, you can ask about the kinds of animals you might see at a zoo.
Yelp is displaying pre-written questions on business pages based on frequently asked questions, so you do not have to type them out yourself. The company said the assistant for services will now remember your preferences and give you tailored recommendations for your next project.
The company is also improving search by allowing users to type questions in everyday language directly into the search box. The app will support these conversational queries through voice search.
Until now, Yelp has highlighted popular dishes and drinks on restaurant and bar pages. The company will now also show popular desserts on food outlets’ pages. Additionally, Yelp is expanding this feature to more than one hundred business categories. Users will be able to see the top services offered by an outlet in a most mentioned section on each page, for instance, popular haircuts or color treatments at a salon.
Yelp is adding another AI-powered feature that helps diners explore menu items. Using AI image recognition, users can scan a physical menu with their phone camera. Overlay bubbles will appear on screen over different dishes. Tapping a bubble lets you see photos of that dish and read what diners have said about it.
With these new features, the company is making search more visual and conversational. In response to the rise of chat-style search tools, established players like Google have also added similar features to their search and Maps to aid the discovery of new places.
Earlier this year, the company previewed AI-powered voice agents for restaurants and services businesses. With its new update, these tools are now available to businesses. The company’s AI host can take bookings, answer questions, handle special requests, and change reservations for restaurants. Its AI receptionist for services businesses can gather project details, help qualify leads, and send call summaries to the business’s Yelp inbox. Other companies are also providing AI-powered voice solutions for restaurants and order management.
With this fall release, Yelp is also launching several additional features. These include AI-generated videos that compile user photos and narrate information about restaurants and bars. The update brings expanded video uploads, increasing the limit from ten to thirty seconds. There is a new visual summary of restaurants and bars using photos and videos. The release also includes grouped before-and-after photos for service businesses and a new section for planning future projects.