SINGAPORE – “What do I have on today?” Mr Caleb Yung asks his artificial intelligence-powered chatbot on Telegram, which replies within a second with his full schedule for the day.

The 25-year-old tells the chatbot to add a lunch with his friend at 1.30pm, which it does in seconds, and then asks if he would like the event added to his calendar.

This AI-powered personal assistant was created by Mr Yung, who studies computer and data science at Nanyang Technological University (NTU). He said it can also help him create study plans and give him a snapshot of the week ahead.

Mr Yung recognises that while his AI assistant may not be revolutionary, its true value lies in how it reduces his mental load.

For students just starting out, he said the bots do not need to be sophisticated. Rather, the goal is to build simple tools that meet their specific needs, allowing them to delegate repetitive tasks and concentrate on more critical responsibilities.

To develop the AI agent, Mr Yung drew on skills picked up from his ...