Generative AI takes center stage in latest ServiceNow release

ServiceNow’s latest platform release, dubbed Washington DC, moves the cloud-based IT management and operations software company sharply in the direction of generative AI, with new features designed to help companies working with that technology.

The Washington DC platform applies generative AI technology to several of ServiceNow’s flagship solutions. Its ITOM AIOps platform can now use the technology to analyze alerts and provide context for operators working on issue resolution, while upgrades to existing AI features in Virtual Agent give better case deflection (directing requests to an automated system that can handle the problem instead of taking up live worker time) by providing a more robust, naturalistic conversational experience, among other upgrades.

The idea is to automate more workflows and provide simplified, easy-to-use ways to management, according to ServiceNow.

“Automating workflows not only simplifies experiences, but improves productivity, freeing up time for employees to focus on more complex tasks rather than manual and menial ones,” the company said in a statement. “The Washington DC release includes new features to unlock end-to-end workflow automation across the enterprise, powering innovation and creating new efficiencies.”

AI with governance

One of the most important aspects of the current release, according to IDC group vice president Stephen Elliot, is the meshing of more robust generative AI support with ServiceNow’s standardized data governance and management systems, which are popular among the company’s larger customers.

“I think this is a key release, because now as customers continue to understand not just the technology behind this, but also the security, the data governance and regional regulations … these are all layers of maturity that are continuing to progress,” he said. “I think for the Washington DC release, ServiceNow is looking to address some of these concerns.”

Nevertheless, improvements to the core functionality of ServiceNow’s products haven’t taken a back seat, according to Elliot, who noted that the widespread use of generative AI among customers for other purposes is something the company was clearly thinking about when designing the Washington DC platform.

“Everybody’s going to have multiple models adopted,” he said. “These are really layered capabilities from a technology workflow or an employee workflow or a low-code, no-code type of developer workflow.”

ServiceNow declined to provide pricing data on its new feature set. All new features of the Washington DC platform are available as of now to the company’s customers.