Microsoft Makes Natural Language Interface Integration for Websites Fast, Simple, and Open

Microsoft is debuting NLWeb, an open project designed to easily integrate natural language interfaces into websites with enterprises’ own models and data. Developed to help make any website an AI-powered app, NLWeb (Natural Language Web) makes creating natural language interfaces for websites quick and easy.

Microsoft envisions NLWeb as playing “a similar role to HTML in the emerging agentic web,” where, as a technologically agnostic project, NLWeb will act as a widely accessible way to infuse AI into organizations' websites. Each NLWeb instance is also a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server, which enables website content to be discoverable and accessible by other entities, if they choose.

“Our goal is to bring the benefits of AI that have transformed the way people search directly to the websites themselves. Just like the introduction of HTML made it easy for almost anyone to create a website, we want NLWeb to make it easy for any web publisher to create an intelligent, natural language experience for their site,” explained Microsoft. “And as the agentic web (and economy) continue to grow, NLWeb will empower web publishers to participate on their terms, ensuring their website is ready to interact, transact, and be discovered by other agents if they choose.”

NLWeb is powered by several semi-structured formats—including Schema.org, RSS, and other data that websites already publish—in combination with large language model (LLM)-powered tools. This technological pairing allows website owners to create natural language interfaces both usable by humans and AI agents. To further enhance user experiences, NLWeb incorporates external knowledge from the underlying LLMs, such as including geographic data to a restaurant query.

Several companies have begun publishing or collaborating on the project, affirming NLWeb’s web publishing legitimacy, which include entities such as Chicago Public Media, Shopify, Snowflake, Tripadvisor, and more.

To learn more about NLWeb, please visit https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/.