Now Assist Catalog Generation w/ Kartik Aysola - ServiceNow Creator Toolbox

[Kristy Merriam]

✨ Give the gift of Generative AI to everyone with Now Assist Catalog Generation

The process of building service catalog items has traditionally been a manual and time-consuming task for developers. Enter Now Assist for Catalog Generation, a game-changing feature in ServiceNow’s Xanadu release that leverages Generative AI to automate the creation of catalog items from simple text prompts. This new functionality streamlines service catalog management, making it easier than ever to generate complete catalog items without having to write scripts or manually configure fields.

In a latest Creator Toolbox episode, Kartik Aysola, Principal Product Manager at ServiceNow, walked through the power and potential of this feature with a live demo, showing just how much time developers can save by using natural language to generate complex catalog items. Here’s what we learned.

How Does Catalog Generation Work?

The idea is simple: users input a plain text description or set of requirements, and Now Assist will automatically generate the necessary catalog items, including:

• Name, short description, and long description
• Mandatory fields and reference fields (e.g., country tables, user data)
• Set of questions based on the input

During the demo, Kartik showcased the creation of a travel visa request form, where the system generated fields like "Travel Start Date," "Passport Number," and "Country of Birth," all linked to the core country table.

While the generated item was impressively accurate, Kartik also emphasized that developers should always review the output, as there may occasionally be minor discrepancies, like missing default values. However, the tool is remarkably efficient at handling 95% of the heavy lifting.

Best Practices for Using Catalog Generation

One of the key takeaways from the episode was the importance of crafting clear and concise prompts. Here are some best practices:

1. Be Specific with Your Prompts: The more details you provide (e.g., field types, default values, mandatory fields), the better the AI will perform.
2. Use Standard Terms: Stick to industry-standard terms and avoid organizational jargon to get the best results from the AI.
3. Reference Fields Correctly: Ensure you specify exact table names when working with reference variables to avoid mapping issues.
4. Review and Regenerate: If the output isn’t quite right, you can regenerate the item as many times as needed while it’s in draft mode.

Looking Ahead: The Future of Catalog Generation

Kartik shared some exciting news about future enhancements. While the current release focuses on generating catalog items and questions, upcoming updates will add support for UI policy generation and dynamic behavior, with the long-term goal of integrating Flow Generation and Code Generation. This means you’ll soon be able to generate complex workflows and fulfillment processes using the same text-based approach.

As ServiceNow continues to push the boundaries of what Generative AI can do, the possibilities for automating catalog creation are expanding rapidly. Whether you're an admin, developer, or business user, Now Assist for Catalog Generation is a feature to explore as it evolves.

Stay tuned for more updates on this exciting tool, and don’t forget to check out the full episode of Creator Toolbox to see it in action.