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Consulting firms provide businesses with professional advice based on thorough research of a specific industry or area. As a result, consultancy firms have robust sources and research data -- and now McKinsey & Company has launched an AI chatbot to helps its clients access this information.

On Thursday, McKinsey unveiled Lilli, its AI-powered search tool that gives clients and consultants easy access to the firm's vast stores of knowledge. 

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When asked a question, Lilli scans the firm's databases and identifies five to seven relevant pieces of content, summarizes key points, includes links, and even identifies experts, according to a press release from McKinsey. 

McKinsey has a robust knowledge base that consists of more than 40 curated knowledge sources, 100,000 documents and interview transcripts, and a network of experts that spans 70 countries. A tool like Lilli makes it easier to place those rich sources in the right hands. 

"Lilli aggregates our knowledge and capabilities in one place for the first time and will allow us to spend more time with clients activating those insights and recommendations and maximizing the value we can create," says Erik Roth, a senior partner with McKinsey.

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Since Lilli was designed with clients and consultants in mind, both were used to pilot the model. Ultimately, both clients and partners can use the firm's body of knowledge for everyday business applications and in their attempts to increase productivity. 

As part of the press release, several McKinsey partners share their accounts of incorporating Lilli into their workflow for different use cases, including preparing for work with clients, and getting ready for meetings and presentations. 

"I use Lilli to look for weaknesses in our argument and anticipate questions that may arise," said Adi Pradhan, an associate partner at McKinsey. 

"I also use it to tutor myself on new topics and make connections between different areas on my projects." 

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McKinsey has more than 70 experts working on Lilli who ensure it is deployed cost effectively and safely. The firm plans to scale Lilli across the business to thousands of colleagues by the end of the year.

Many enterprises are choosing to build their own generative AI models. This strategy allows companies to cater a language model to their specific business requirements and can also help to ensure that sensitive company data stays protected. 

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• What is Amazon Bedrock? 4 ways it can help businesses use generative AI tools
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