Microsoft has announced a new “bot framework” for building virtual assistants available via text message, Skype, Slack, and other services. Bots are software driven virtual assistants that use natural language recognition to allow customers or users to interact with applications for scenarios such as obtaining customer service, ordering food, or finding information.
The bot framework is available in Node.JS and C# and can be written and deployed to a specific channel, e.g. your Office 365 account to receive requests.
The SDK is open source and available on GitHub.