Sun Tzu’s new conversational assistant changes the relationship between brands and audiences

Conversational experiences are already a close, measurable and efficient operational channel.

Brands and media have been looking for more direct ways to connect with their audiences for years. Traditional chatbots failed to deliver on that promise. But the new generation of conversational AI is rewriting the rules. A recent case demonstrates this with data: during Korrika, one of the most important cultural events in the Basque Country, an artificial intelligence assistant deployed on WhatsApp and in the EITB digital assets accumulated nearly 200 hours of conversations in Basque in just two weeks, with a rating of 4 out of 5 and 93% of conversations resolved successfully.

The project, led by the artificial intelligence consultancy Sun Tzu by Smartup, in collaboration with EITB and ElevenLabs, is a case study on how conversational experiences with AI allow organizations to create a new type of relationship with their audiences.

What changes: from informing to talking

Until now, a medium or a brand that wanted to serve its audience during a live event had limited options: publications on networks, a website with static information or, in the best of cases, a chatbot with predefined responses. The result was a one-way channel that didn’t personalize, didn’t adapt to context, and didn’t generate actionable data about what the audience really needed.

The system deployed for the Korrika proposed a different model. The assistant responded in Basque, in real time, to specific queries from each user. And each conversation was at the same time a distribution opportunity: the system led to the EITB live broadcast and the official app, turning each interaction into an entry point to the medium’s content ecosystem.

Óscar Cordero, CEO of Sun Tzu by Smartup, explains that “for us, conversational experiences are a key piece in a broader path towards the adoption of AI. We help prioritize, discover where it can have the greatest impact and look for solutions adapted to each moment and context to make projects happen.

Why this case matters to the sector

The Korrika project is not only relevant for the results, but for what it demonstrates about a new operating model. There are three elements that make this case a reference. First, the complexity of the context: a minority language, changing information in real time and development under very tight deadlines. Second, the measurement: the system had complete traceability of each conversation, direct user evaluation and guardrails validated by the EITB editorial team.

And third, the emotional response: users used the system, expressing gratitude and connection: “Oso ondo Pasa dut zurekin” (I had a great time with you), “Zorionak ekimenagatik” (Congratulations for the initiative). These types of expressions are rarely associated with interaction with an automated system, which points to a qualitative change in how the audience experiences these channels.

«The Korrika is much more than a race, it is a feeling shared by the entire Basque Country. When Sun Tzu proposed this solution to us, the agility, affection and reaction capacity of his team to make it possible within the deadlines we had was impeccable,» declares Nagore de los Ríos, Director of EITB.eus and Social Media.

The figures: mature product results in a first deployment

The project metrics speak of unusual performance in a first deployment. Nearly 200 hours of conversations held during the two weeks of the event. A rating of 4 out of 5, with an upward trend that closed at 5 out of 5 on the final day, the day with the greatest participation and emotional charge for the Korrika. And 93% of conversations were successfully resolved, well above the standards of traditional chatbots.

That crescendo in satisfaction is especially revealing: not only did the system withstand the demand of the final stretch, but the experience improved as the event gained in intensity. An indicator that conversational AI, when designed with purpose, responds well precisely when it is most demanded.

How it was done: speed, rigor and a replicable model

Sun Tzu led the project from technological selection to deployment: he built the solution, carried out the integrations, evaluated the language models with the best performance in Basque and launched it in record time. ElevenLabs, for its part, provided its platform for free, aligning its mission of linguistic accessibility with an event that exists precisely to promote the use of a language.

«The Korrika is an event with an enormous cultural and linguistic load, and supporting Basque connects directly with ElevenLabs’ reason for being: making technology accessible in all languages.» Marco Valera, Enterprise GTM at ElevenLabs

The result is a replicable model: an organization with content or services that wants to reach its audience in a more direct and personalized way, a technological partner that understands where to apply AI with real impact, and an infrastructure that allows each interaction to be measured. For brands and media that observe this type of experiences, the reading is clear: conversational AI is not a bet for the future, it is an already operational tool.

Source: www.marketingdirecto.com