Customer frustration with service continues to be a huge challenge.

Service delivery should be improving, given that Customer Experience (CX) is widely acknowledged as a mission critical function, requiring tech investment and the appointment of CX-responsible executives.

Unfortunately, despite commitments to artificial intelligence (AI) and automation to upgrade customer service capabilities, a CCW (Customer Contact Week) study has confirmed what we all sense to be true, reporting a 55% reporting a decline in quality over the past year. The issue isn’t AI itself but how companies use it – prioritizing efficiency over empathy.

The Problem: Misaligned AI Strategies

Businesses too often deploy AI to cut costs, forcing customers into rigid, impersonal journeys. Common pain points include:

• Basic automation failing complex queries.
• Channel-switching (e.g., WhatsApp to phone).
• Lack of personalization, requiring customers to repeat themselves. A persistent source of friction.
• High expectations set by CX leaders like Amazon, unmet by others.

The Solution: AI + Human Empathy

AI excels in transactional tasks like password resets but falls short in emotionally charged moments like service outages. For now, the immediate future lies in AI complementing human agents, not replacing them. Companies must:

• Use AI for high-volume, low-emotion tasks.
• Reserve human interaction for complex, empathetic needs.
• Train AI with quality data tailored to customer use cases.

Looking Ahead to 2026

To win at CX, businesses must prioritize customer-first strategies. This means building or partnering for AI models that ensure compliance, accuracy, and scalability..

The future of CX is about blending AI’s efficiency with human empathy to create genuine connections that keep customers coming back.