Exsys History

Exsys Inc was founded in 1983 and is the longest-lived knowledge automation expert system software company in the industry.  The original Exsys Expert System Development Tool was one of the first such tools aimed at the PC, with most other comparable tools of that time limited to LISP machines.  The Exsys approach was to create a highly efficient Inference Engine that was able to run effectively on early PCs, but still handle complex real-world problems.

Many AI tools came out of academia, and were based on arcane complexity that was far too complicated for the average user. Exsys tools for building expert systems were (and are) based on a very pragmatic and practical approach to rule and logic development. Exsys took the approach that rules should be readable, easily understood and replicate the steps human experts think about when solving problems.  The company's product philosophy - domain experts should be able to build their own expert systems without requiring advanced programming skills – still holds true today.

By the late 1980's the Exsys strategy had been adopted by many corporate businesses and government agencies. They built proven, powerful systems using Exsys software, with ROIs of 100-to-1 being common. Exsys' insights and perseverance were widely recognized. The company was selected as the only commercial vendor to demonstrate expert systems at a GAO sponsored Congressional symposium that explained how to use expert systems effectively to a standing-room-only audience from all government agencies.

In the mid '90s, Exsys started looking at the Internet. While many then still considered it mostly a novelty, Exsys saw the Web as the ideal way to distribute expert systems, making problem-solving knowledge available worldwide from a single site.  Exsys was the first to develop a way for interactive Inference Engine based expert systems to be run over the Internet.  At that time, Exsys used a complex CGI approach that has since been replaced by newer Java technologies.

By 2000, there had been major changes in programming languages and the Internet had become the primary means of communication around the globe.  The original Exsys tools had gone through many versions and updates, and the company undertook a ground-up redesign of the Inference Engine and development tools with a focus on "Knowledge Automation". A new paradigm was designed that made system development even easier and faster, and Java was utilized for multi-platform system delivery on the Web. In 2001 this new tool was released as Exsys Corvid®.  An upward migration path allowed older systems to be moved into Corvid with minimal effort.

In 2008, Exsys extended what users could do with Corvid by providing a way to run the software's Inference Engine under Adobe Flash.  This allowed the extensive graphics, animation and multimedia capabilities of Flash to be integrated with Corvid's logic analysis for spectacular Web 2.0 systems. Exsys continues to enhance the tools and Inference Engine to meet customer needs and function requests, and take advantage of new Web technologies.

Through the years Exsys customers have also been supported with a wide range of training options and consulting services. We can help you with a pilot project you have in mind, bring the power of Knowledge Automation into your own products, implement interactive expertise access on your Web site, or standardize expert systems throughout an enterprise. Our consulting staff has a thorough understanding of computer operating systems, hardware, software, Web and IT integration and services.

Worldwide, Exsys Corvid has become one of the most widely used tools for capturing and delivering interactive primary asset decision-making expertise, with many systems developed by business, industry, research, military and government (Case Studies).  Corvid is also used by hundreds of schools and universities using it in IT and decision-support classes, and many other curriculums.

In fact, thousands of companies worldwide depend on Exsys to manage their knowledge automation and expertise delivery functions. We are proud to be contributing to the success of companies of all sizes, in all industries, around the globe.