Building Predictable Conversational AI: Bridging Design, Engineering & Control at Scale
In this episode of the CDI Expert Series: Unprompted, we sit down with Yam Marcovitz, former software architect at Microsoft and Apex.AI, and co-founder of the open-source AI framework Parlant. With a background in real-time systems and enterprise software, Yam brings a systems-level perspective to one of AI's biggest challenges: getting LLMs to consistently do what you want.The conversation explores the gap between design and engineering in conversational AI, why current tools fall short, and how open source plays a crucial role in responsible AI development. Yam shares practical insights on building agent behavior that's not just intelligent but reliable and predictable at scale.
The episode also explores:
- How team collaboration and clear communication impact AI behavior as much as the technology itself
- The limitations of current conversation design toolsSeparating design and engineering workflows to improve efficiency and clarity
- Creating flexible agents without sacrificing controlMoving beyond "prompt and pray" to systematic testing and validation
- Managing updates/fixing issues without retraining models from scratchDesigning for multilingual, multichannel interactions
- How linguistic precision directly impacts agent performance
- Why open source and transparency are key to building responsible, scalable AI systems
Throughout the episode, Yam offers a practical, behind-the-scenes look at how robust AI systems are actually built; balancing flexibility with control, and creativity with structure. So, after reflecting on this episode: how can you build AI systems that are not just intelligent, but truly reliable, testable, and scalable?
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Yam Marcovitz,
https://il.linkedin.com/in/yam-marcovic
CEO, Parlant.io
What is Unprompted?
Welcome to Unprompted, a conversation series by the Conversation Design Institute, where we explore the craft, the practice, and the future of conversational AI with the people shaping it.
Learn directly from global leaders, designers, and researchers who are shaping the future of Conversational AI. Each episode of Unprompted brings candid insights, practical lessons, and behind-the-scenes stories from the people building today’s most impactful AI experiences.