Inference Corporation
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 | |
| Founded | 1979 |
|---|---|
| Defunct | 2000 |
| Fate | Acquired by eGain |
| Headquarters | Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Website | inference.com at the Wayback Machine (archived 1999-02-09) |
Inference Corporation[1][2] was an American software company that specialized in artificial intelligence systems.[3]
Los Angeles-based Inference was founded in 1979.[3] In the 1990s they built a case-based computer program for Compaq Computer Corporation that would enable dealing with a situation where "a computer printer turns out a blurry and smeared page" without having to call a help desk.[1] Although such software already existed, the breakthrough was that it was small enough to fit "on three floppy disks."
The company's Automated Reasoning Tool (ART), initially implemented on a mainframe, subsequently made available on PCs, has been extended to ART-IM, an Information Management package; the product line originated in 1988.[4][5]
Ford and AOL are among the household-known corporations that use Inference software to enhance customer service.[6][3] Inference was acquired by eGain Corporation in 2000.[7] Prior to that, Inference acquired 1981-founded Computer Mathematics Corporation, marketer of SMP (computer algebra system);[8] Inference made another acquisition the year before they themselves were acquired by eGain.[9]
