That’s the challenge for a University of Texas at Dallas team of computer science students competing in the Alexa Prize Socialbot Grand Challenge 4. The team’s socialbot skill is publicly accessible in the United States to anyone who says “Alexa, let’s chat” on their Alexa app or device. The winning team will receive $500,000, and the students’ university could receive a $1 million research grant. The question is: How can you make an AI friend who can have a discussion with you?” said Kinjal Basu, a computer science doctoral student in the Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science who is leading the team. The UT Dallas team also includes Huaduo Wang, computer engineering doctoral student; Sarat Chandra Varanasi, Fang Li and Xiangci Li, all computer science doctoral students; and Nancy Dominguez BS’15, computer science graduate student.