About AI
Get your own digital assistant with UI automation
Imagine having a digital assistant that takes care of all the repetitive, time-consuming tasks you deal with every day. That’s exactly what user interface (UI) automation offers. It’s like giving your computer the ability to do the clicking, typing, and navigating for you.
Whether you’re in healthcare, finance, or any field that relies on tedious workflows, automation can save you time and make your workday a whole lot smoother. Discover what UI automation is, why it’s important, and how you can use it to simplify your processes to unlock a smarter and more efficient way to work.
What is UI automation?
UI automation refers to the use of software robots, like RPA, to perform tasks on a computer, just as a person would, but without human input. Think of it as a digital assistant that interacts with UI elements, clicks buttons, types information, and navigates through systems, plugins, and web applications for you.
UI automation enables you to automate tasks across various mobile apps and web browsers, be that Firefox, Chrome, or Microsoft Edge. It can also be used with various operating systems, including Windows, iOS, Android, and Linux, and it is compatible with different programming languages, such as Python, Java, and HTML.
UI automation is especially useful for repetitive tasks, like data entry or logging in to multiple systems. By automating these processes, you can save time, reduce errors, and focus on higher-value work.
With low-code platforms, even those without extensive coding knowledge can reap the benefits of UI automation. This makes it a game-changer for streamlining workflows, no matter your industry or department.
Why is UI automation important?
UI automation is important because it frees you from the boring, repetitive tasks that eat up your time and energy. Instead of spending hours clicking through systems or entering data, automation handles it for you so you can focus on the meaningful parts of your job.
It also helps to reduce human errors, which is especially critical in fields like healthcare where accuracy matters. Plus, it boosts productivity and ensures processes are done consistently. In short, it makes your life easier and your work more efficient.
Benefits of UI automation
As we’ve already touched on, UI automation provides you with a range of benefits to make your workday easier. Some of the biggest benefits of UI automation include:
Saves time
Automation handles repetitive tasks, freeing you up for more important work.
Reduces errors
UI automation minimizes mistakes like typos or skipped steps, ensuring accuracy in routine processes.
Improves efficiency
With automation, tasks get done faster and more consistently. Tasks can even be completed outside of working hours.
Boosts productivity
Automation helps you and your team get more done in less time.
Cuts costs
Since automation streamlines workflows, it reduces the need for extra resources.
Simplifies complex tasks
With UI automation assisting you, tasks like managing data, scheduling, and other operation workflows become much easier.
Who uses UI automation?
UI automation is used by all kinds of people and industries. You might see it in businesses like healthcare, finance, and retail, where repetitive tasks like data entry, billing, or inventory updates need streamlining.
IT professionals, developers, and testers use UI automation as a UI test automation tool in software development to reduce the need for manual testing. It can be used to run test scripts. This helps make the testing process better in different test scenarios, like automated testing, API testing, and functional testing. Alternatively, office teams rely on it to handle admin work or reporting.
Even if you’re not tech-savvy, low-code platforms make it easy for almost anyone to get started. Essentially, if you’ve got a task that’s repetitive, chances are someone has automated it before.
Business use cases for UI automation
Since UI automation can be leveraged across industries and departments, there are tons of use cases for it. Some common examples might include:
Healthcare
Automating patient data entry from one system to another, scheduling appointments, or generating medical reports.
Finance
Processing invoices, reconciling accounts, and generating financial reports for audits.
Customer service
Automating responses to FAQs or updating customer information across systems.
HR operations
Streamlining employee onboarding, payroll processing, and performance review reminders.
IT and software testing
Running repetitive automated UI testing and other software tests to ensure apps function properly after updates.
Retail
Managing inventory updates, order tracking, and automated price adjustments.
Supply chain
Automating shipment tracking and generating compliance documents for logistics.
Marketing
Handling email campaigns, lead data entry, or analytics reporting.
How to create UI automations
While the specifics can vary from one automation to another, the basic steps for creating a UI automation are as follows:
Identify the process
Start by choosing the repetitive task or workflow that you want to automate. Break it down into specific, clear steps.
Design the workflow
Use your automation platform’s interface to build the automation. For example, use the platform’s automation tools to drag and drop actions, like clicks, data inputs, or navigation steps, that replicate the task.
Set variables and logic
Add variables, conditions, and loops to handle dynamic inputs or decision making within the process.
Test the automation
Run the workflow in a test environment to ensure it performs as expected. Fix any errors that might occur.
Deploy and monitor
Start the automation in your work place and watch how it works to make any changes you need.
Automate your routine workflows with UiPath
If you want to harness the power of UI automation for your daily workflows, the UiPath Platform makes it easy for the end user. It enables businesses to optimize their processes for efficiency and scalability while supporting a low-code/no-code development approach, delivering an optimal user experience for citizen and professional developers alike.
UiPath combines UI and API automation into a unified system, which enables you to seamlessly integrate both modern and legacy systems using prebuilt connectors or custom APIs, simplifying automating workflows that involve multiple systems and applications.
Unlock the power of UI automation with UiPath Studio at https://www.uipath.com/product/studio
