On 11 July 2024, the International Society of Automation (ISA) announced a large language model (LLM) trained on ISA content and powered by artificial intelligence (AI). Named MimoSM, this LLM's knowledge base covers ISA standards, training, technical reports, white papers, articles and presentations. It can also answer user questions in multiple languages about industrial automation and operational technology (OT) cybersecurity.
Let's explore what Mimo is, how to use it and how users can get the most out of it.
What Is an LLM?
A large language model, or LLM, is a machine learning algorithm that is trained on a large dataset of text and has the ability to generate new content based on that data. Large language models use AI to perform language-related tasks such as recognizing questions and summarizing large amounts of text. ChatGPT is by far the most widely known LLM in use today, but not all LLMs rely on ChatGPT's technology.
What's Different About Mimo?
Mimo is drawing from years of ISA-exclusive content on industrial automation and operational technology cybersecurity, including proprietary documents. It has access to everything from ISA standards to archives of presentations and technical reports. (These are only available otherwise in ISA's Pub Hub, the member-only content portal.)
Mimo also cites its sources, linking directly to the standard, article or report from which it derives its answers.
This allows users to dive deeper into their research if they choose, creating a richer and more relevant experience than working with ChatGPT or other similar services. (Other LLMs, including ChatGPT, don't provide the sources of their answers.)
How to Use Mimo
Users can visit www.isa.org/mimo to try out Mimo for themselves. They can type their questions on industrial automation into the chat field, and Mimo will answer based on what's available in its knowledge base.
It's also easy to give feedback on Mimo's responses — users can click "thumbs-up" or "thumbs-down" icons below each answer, and an additional dialog box will open where users can share their thoughts. Mimo learns from user feedback, so every interaction helps in future responses.
The tool can also respond in languages other than English. Users can ask Mimo questions in multiple languages — Mimo will provide its answers in kind.
Just a note: all answers are considered to be non-authoritative and for educational purposes only.
How to Benefit the Most from Mimo
Users will get the most out of Mimo by becoming an ISA member. When members are logged in, Mimo's responses will be more detailed. Anyone who is not a member or who is not logged in will still be able to use the tool, but the answers they get will be brief and to the point. Non-members can only ask a few questions per day as well, while ISA members have unlimited access.
Learn More
Mimo was developed in coordination with Betty Bot. Read about Mimo's background in this dedicated article from "Associations Now" and check out the press release announcing Mimo to the world.
