How Redpanda's AI Chat Grew 5x in 5 Months

Recently named by Forbes as one of the 25 companies most likely to reach unicorn status, Redpanda is a streaming data platform for software developers that helps engineering teams process hundreds of terabytes of streaming data daily through their applications and services. Their developer portal serves leading companies like Activision, Texas Instruments, Midjourney, and Cisco, who rely on Redpanda's Kafka-compatible platform for their mission-critical streaming data needs.

"We started out looking for a better search experience for our users. Very quickly, we realized that this is way more than a search mechanism - users could get specific configuration outputs and code examples in their preferred programming language instantly"

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KEY RESULTS (First 6 months)

Nomination for best AI-augmented user experience

In the 2024 DevPortal Awards

4,500+ support hours boosted

from 20,000+ questions answered by Kapa.ai

93% average certainty rate

percentage of questions that can be answered from the knowledge base

5x increase in monthly usage

from 1,135 to 5,000+ monthly questions in 5 months

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THE SITUATION

Meeting real-Time support needs

As a rapidly growing streaming data platform, Redpanda needed a better way to handle customer queries and ensure their documentation could scale to support their expanding developer community. The team recognized that traditional search tools weren't providing the interactive, contextual experience that modern developers expect.

The limitations of traditional search became increasingly apparent. "Search results were hard to navigate. It was purely keyword-based search, not context-aware," explains Fee. "Users would get a list of results, click one, find it wasn't what they wanted, go back - and lose their whole list of results. It was a frustrating experience for users, who were squandering time running the same queries over just to return to the results."

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THE SOLUTION

How Redpanda uses Kapa.ai's AI chat to transform developer support

After careful evaluation of several AI solutions, Redpanda chose Kapa.ai for its ability to understand technical context and provide accurate, specific answers to developer questions. 

"We had done a POC with another AI startup," Fee recalls. "They were just not mature enough. There were so many hallucinations and no dashboard yet." This experience made them particularly appreciative of Kapa.ai's accuracy and analytics capabilities.

How kapa works

Kapa has access to the following Redpanda resources with regular automated refreshes to continuously be up-to-date:

• Comprehensive public documentation

• GitHub discussions and community interactions

• Support FAQs from Zendesk

• YouTube tutorials and guides

• OpenAPI specifications

• Custom API reference documentation

Kapa is deployed across multiple touchpoints to ensure comprehensive support coverage:

A. Website deployment

1. Redpanda documentation site

Users can access instant AI assistance through the documentation portal at docs.redpanda.com. The integration has been recognized by the DevPortal Awards for offering "the most ready-to-use solution" that "works in tandem with traditional search functionality, effectively supporting both novice and experienced developers.". The Redpanda team implemented this using kapa.ai's customizable off-the-shelf widget solution, making it simple and quick to deploy.

2. Redpanda support site

Users can also interact with kapa directly on the support site, providing immediate assistance before they need to create a support ticket.

B. Slack deployment

1. Internal

The internal deployment helps support teams quickly access accurate information and provide faster responses to customer inquiries. Support engineers can quickly reference documentation and past solutions without leaving their workflow. This integration also acts for internal users who can start consult kapa for instant support before following up with a colleague.

2. Community

Kapa is available in Redpanda's Slack Community in the self-serve #ask-ai channel, where users can get immediate answers to their technical questions and make solutions available with other community members.

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THE IMPACT

Fast route to impact 

The implementation quickly proved its value. "The value is irrefutable based on the numbers we're seeing. " notes Fee. "Kapa can answer up to 95% of questions based on the data in our knowledge base. In September, we had about 3,000 questions. By October, it jumped to over 5,000 questions from developers. The trust is building every month."

Also internally via the Slack integration Kapa.ai exceeded initial expectations. "Out of the blue one night, one of our customer success engineers just messaged me saying 'I love Kapa'" Fee shares. "That same engineer now averages 2-3 questions every day. When you see that kind of organic adoption, you know you've found something that provides great value."

Beyond traditional search capabilities

The platform's ability to understand context and provide tailored responses has transformed how developers interact with documentation. 

Fee recalls a particular example: "I saw one developer ask about implementing something specific using certain APIs. After getting the initial answer, they asked for it in JavaScript - and Kapa immediately provided the converted code.  That's when we realized this was way more than just search."

Scaling documentation efficiently

The impact on team efficiency has been particularly notable during product expansions. "Just in the last year, we took on a new product, Redpanda Connect with over 250 pages of content that we integrated in 3 weeks," Fee notes. The ability to quickly integrate and make new documentation searchable and accessible has become a key advantage for the team.

Streamlining team operations

The impact extends across multiple teams. Sales and customer success engineers use it consistently, "averaging 2-3 questions every other day," says Fee. "These folks are saving so much time getting quick, specific, and accurate answers to their questions to share with potential and existing customers."

"Support engineers' ability to answer live customer queries have been enhanced with kapa. Sometimes specific, reliable, and detailed answers are needed in real time."

The documentation team has found new efficiencies in their workflow. "We now don’t need to bother our engineers with questions that our knowledge sources can already answer, instead we go to Kapa first", explains Fee. 

Proactive support and data-driven improvements

Redpanda has implemented a strategic approach to support ticket management, giving users an opportunity to ask their question to Kapa.ai before filing a support ticket. The platform's analytics capabilities have become crucial for identifying documentation gaps and prioritizing improvements. "Some of the questions are helping us with the road map for that new content," Fee explains. "The way people are using Redpanda and the type of questions that they're asking helps us see where the gaps are and how we need to improve the docs."

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THE FUTURE

Building AI-powered documentation support

Redpanda continues to expand their use of Kapa.ai, focusing on enhancing developer success and team efficiency. The team is exploring ways to integrate more technical content sources to enable even more sophisticated responses.

"We're constantly looking for ways to leverage Kapa.ai so that customers have a high degree of success getting the content they need, whether it's to debug, configure, or understand our APIs," explains Fee. "We're looking at bringing in more sources because the more good sources we bring in, the more technical questions they can ask. Creating a Redpanda YAML file for specific configurations would be a game changer, especially if it was highly accurate most of the time."

"It's an easy sell because the value is irrefutable. We're seeing it in the numbers, in the certainty rates, and in how much internal users and customers are using it."

The impact extends beyond just documentation. "It's a win-win because customers get their configuration questions answered without having to contact support, improving their experience with our product while making our teams more efficient," Fee notes. "The reach of the benefits extends beyond documentation support. If we can get these kinds of answers more readily available, it's good for our resources and helps our customer success team focus on higher-value activities."