Case Studies

Idorsia. Design and Development of Italy's First AI-Based Chatbot for Insomnia

3 min read

Published on July 15, 2024

Solutions: Technology & Innovation

Pharma e Lifescience

Idorsia. Design and Development of Italy's First AI-Based Chatbot for Insomnia

AURORA was developed by MAIZE, a JAKALA company, with the unconditional sponsorship of Idorsia Italy, a biopharmaceutical company specialized in discovering, developing, and commercializing innovative small molecules. Launched in December 2023, AURORA represents Italy's first Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) focused on increasing public awareness about insomnia. It is an advanced AI-based application which delivers scientifically validated information through certified responses, accessible via WhatsApp and a dedicated landing page.

Insomnia is a complex condition, often silent, invisible, and not readily recognized as a medical issue. Consequently, many individuals do not seek proper treatment. Instead of consulting specialists or visiting sleep centers, people tend to self-treat for various reasons; the belief that insomnia is a minor or normal problem, a lack of awareness about effective treatments, misconceptions about sleep disorders, concerns over the cost of treatments, and the stigma associated with seeking help for sleep issues. This reliance on self-treatment is often exacerbated by the abundance of easily accessible, though frequently unreliable, online information.

AURORA aims to address these challenges by functioning as a digital assistant for patients that combines authoritative knowledge with emotional empathy. Its mission is to enhance understanding and awareness of insomnia. The AI-driven technical expertise of MAIZE, in collaboration with sleep disorder specialists and with the support of Idorsia, has facilitated the creation of this knowledgeable assistant. AURORA provides certified responses with the right balance of expertise and empathy, drawing from a comprehensive knowledge base.

Initially, MAIZE co-designed the identity and main content of the chatbot, focusing on:

The thematic areas of interest to build the chatbot’s knowledge base
Some of the most frequently asked questions by users within these topic areas
The touchpoints for delivering the application
The visual identity and name of the engine

Once the topic content was organized, MAIZE developed the chatbot using Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) technology. RAG is an innovative Artificial Intelligence technology that combines text generation with information retrieval. A RAG tool integrates the functions of a search engine with those of a large language model (LLM)-based conversational assistant. This results in a search engine that can be queried in natural language, find the required information, reprocess it, and return an answer in dialogic form, citing the sources.

In this specific case, the RAG components are integrated with the proprietary conversational framework “dialog,” which includes several additional features:

Follow-up questions
Chit chat
Named Entity Recognition (NER) with cross-referencing to glossary entries
Implementation of rules for managing the dialog flow
Configuration of a wizard
Orchestrator managing calls to the LLM, optimizing costs
Integration with external services via API

The application is also based on domain-specific prompts that control its behavior and tone of voice, with a particular focus on pharmacovigilance issues. AURORA can answer questions and concerns related to the daily life of a person suffering from insomnia, provide information about the disorder, and offer advice on how best to manage it. AURORA is supportive, learns from the questions it receives, and provides valuable advice on maintaining a healthy lifestyle. While adept at offering support, AURORA conscientiously refrains from encroaching upon the domain of healthcare, redirecting users to medical professionals when necessary.

In conclusion, AURORA stands ready to empathize with users, recognizing the correlations between insomnia and life’s challenges, such as bereavement or separation. It adeptly balances a tone of understanding with a serious and assertive demeanor. Beyond addressing specific concerns, AURORA can also provide insights on broader topics related to insomnia and, for those interested, share the intriguing backstory behind its name and design.

01

RAG Architecture

An architecture developed from a knowledge base created during a co-design workshop with a specialized medical board.
02

Live Product

A product well-received across Italy, with successful communication campaigns managed in various Italian cities.