IT Voice – Why is 2025 considered the year of Agentic AI, and what key factors are driving its adoption in customer experience (CX)?
Maureen Chong – 2025 is poised to be the year of Agentic AI due to several converging factors. Advancements in natural language processing (NLP) and machine learning have significantly enhanced AI’s ability to understand and respond to human emotions and queries, making interactions more intuitive. Additionally, the growing demand for personalised customer experiences drives businesses to adopt AI agents that can analyse vast amounts of data in real-time to deliver tailored solutions. Increasing emphasis on efficiency and cost reduction in customer service has also led organisations to integrate AI agents that have the ability to autonomously solve complex problems 24/7, providing consistent and effective support. Moreover, the rise of digital interactions has accelerated the need for scalable, intelligent solutions that can seamlessly engage customers across various platforms. Together, these elements create a perfect storm for the widespread adoption of Agentic AI, enhancing CX in unprecedented ways.
IT Voice – How do AI Agents differ from traditional chatbots, and where does their true value lie for businesses and customers?
Maureen Chong – AI agents differ from traditional chatbots in their ability to understand context, learn from interactions, and engage in more natural conversations. While traditional chatbots function based on predefined scripts and struggle with complex queries, AI agents leverage advanced machine learning and NLP to provide dynamic, personalised responses. They can effortlessly access and analyse customer data, enabling them to provide context-rich personalised solutions for their customers. AI agents evaluate customer intent and sentiment to craft suitable responses or direct them to the right agent to speed up the problem-resolution process.
Their true value lies in enhancing CX by delivering relevant, tailored solutions and insights at scale that evolve with the business. For businesses, AI agents can streamline operations, reduce costs, and improve customer satisfaction. This not only frees up human agents to focus on more complex issues that require a level of empathy and judgement that only humans can provide, but also fosters stronger customer relationships through timely and relevant interactions. Ultimately, the integration of AI agents transforms customer service from reactive to proactive, driving deeper loyalty and engagement for both businesses and customers.
IT Voice – What are the most common mistakes businesses make when investing in AI for CX, and how can they maximize ROI?
Maureen Chong – A common mistake companies make is attempting to fully automate their service model by completely removing human involvement. This approach often leads to more harm than good. Instead, businesses need a balanced human-automation strategy that leverages the strengths of both. Identifying specific areas that can benefit from automation and conducting pilot programs can help to determine optimal efficiency and ROI. Transitioning to an AI-driven model without the right strategies will not yield the desired results.
While AI can be a powerful value creator, developing an effective AI-powered customer experience model requires deep expertise in automation, agent workflows, and customer behaviour. Companies that attempt to do everything in-house often underestimate the complexity of integrating human and AI workflows. The key is to understand when to automate processes, when to involve human agents, and when to rely on AI to achieve the desired outcomes.
IT Voice – How should companies balance AI automation with human agents to create a seamless and effective support experience?
Maureen Chong – To create a seamless support experience, companies should focus on implementing a robust escalation process, where the AI is able to recognise when it cannot resolve a query and seamlessly hand it off to human agents. Doing so prevents customer frustration while ensuring customers receive timely assistance.
With the right AI, every interaction—whether with customers, agents, or admins—should become more personalised, proactive, and, most importantly, easier for the human on the other end. Memorable experiences are not just about driving efficiencies, but also about fostering trust, relationships, and connections. Technology alone cannot address the intricacies of the human experience. Recognising this, businesses should build technology to support humans, not the other way around.
IT Voice – What are the essential features businesses should look for when selecting an Agentic AI solution?
Maureen Chong – When choosing an Agentic AI solution, businesses should prioritise several key features to ensure effectiveness. In addition to the baseline expectation of strong capabilities in NLP to understand and engage in meaningful conversations with customers, it is vital for the Agentic AI solution to integrate seamlessly with existing systems, facilitating the exchange of information. Furthermore, robust quality assurance and analytics capabilities provide insights into customer interactions and evaluate AI performance, enabling better data-driven decision-making.
Another critical aspect is having strong security and compliance measures in place to protect customer data and meet regulatory requirements. Lastly, businesses should seek AI solutions that are purpose-built because AI is only as good as the intelligence it’s fed. For example, AI agents trained on large CX-specific data sets will be able to handle a wide range of support scenarios, including industry-specific ones, more accurately than those trained on generic data sets.
By focusing on these features, businesses can choose an Agentic AI solution that best fits their business needs.
IT Voice – How does Zendesk’s AI technology enable better customer interactions across different industries and regions
Maureen Chong – Zendesk powers 4.6 billion tickets per year, supports 4 million agents and admins using the system, manages 13 billion total end-user accounts, and tracks 19 billion tickets. At the core of our solution is a self-reinforcing system where AI agents, workflows, co-pilots, and quality assurance continuously learn, adapt, and optimise. This flywheel effect accelerates over time, ensuring that as automation scales and quality is maintained, businesses are able to achieve up to 80% automation, delivering consistent ROI both now and in the future.
IT Voice – What pricing models work best for AI-powered CX solutions, and how should businesses assess cost vs. value?
Maureen Chong – When it comes to AI, many leaders we’ve spoken to are excited about the promise of AI, but are held back by a few reservations, typically around the perception of prohibitively high costs associated with AI implementations and the lack of transparency in showing its direct impact on business outcomes. To tackle this, Zendesk introduced outcome-based pricing, where companies will only incur costs for issues that are resolved autonomously by AI. This model ensures businesses only pay for real results delivered by AI agents, aligning costs directly to the tangible value received from AI.
To assess cost versus value, leaders should consider factors relevant to their business priorities and needs, whether that be improved efficiency, enhanced customer satisfaction, and the potential for increased revenue. Conducting a cost-benefit analysis that includes both direct financial impacts and intangible benefits, like brand loyalty and customer retention, can provide a clearer picture of the overall value of the AI-powered CX solution.
IT Voice – How do you see AI Agents evolving over the next 3–5 years, and what innovations will shape the future of CX?
Maureen Chong –We’re entering an exciting age of AI, where innovations occur at warp speed. Over the next 3–5 years, AI agents will evolve to become more intuitive and context-aware, leveraging advancements in natural language processing and machine learning. Innovations such as emotional AI will enable agents to understand and respond to customer emotions, enhancing personalisation. Moreover, AI-to-AI communication will become a significant part of the customer experience as more consumers opt to use personal AI assistants like Alexa or Siri to interact with customer service teams on their behalf. This communication will facilitate sophisticated automation, allowing businesses to offer proactive support by anticipating customer needs based on data exchanged between AI systems.
As a result, the future of CX will not only be defined by efficiency but also by deeper, more meaningful connections between brands and their customers.
IT Voice –Will AI ever fully replace human agents, or do you see a hybrid AI-human model as the long-term future of customer support?
Maureen Chong – While AI will undoubtedly transform customer support, a fully automated future seems unlikely at this stage. The complexity of human emotions, nuanced decision-making, and the need for empathy in customer interactions mean that human agents will always play a crucial role. A hybrid AI-human model is the most viable long-term solution, combining the efficiency and scalability of AI with the emotional intelligence and creativity of human agents. This synergy allows businesses to deliver exceptional customer experiences.
The entire CX landscape is set to transform, and that includes the roles of agents and employees. Notably, 86% of CX leaders in India believe the skill set of their team will look radically different than today, pointing to an evolution of agent and admin roles towards more analytical, higher value work. Although AI is highly effective at eliminating large amounts of manual, repetitive work, it can never truly replace the human touch.
IT Voice – What’s your vision for AI-driven customer experience in 2030, and how is Zendesk positioning itself for this transformation?
Maureen Chong – By 2030, we envision that every service interaction will involve AI in some form, with 80% of issues being fully resolved by AI. Every touchpoint–whether it is a chatbot, an AI-powered assistant, or automated self-service–will be shaped by AI. Importantly, AI will not replace human agents; instead, it will empower them. AI co-pilots will provide human agents with real-time insights, enabling them to focus on high-value, complex tasks. Meanwhile, CX leaders will harness AI-driven insights to make smarter, data-informed decisions that enhance operations and strengthen customer relationships.
At Zendesk, we are at the forefront of this transformation for service, offering businesses the most complete AI-powered service solution that covers every aspect of service. We believe exceptional customer experiences are not just about efficiency; they are about delivering meaningful resolutions that build trust, loyalty and long-term success. What makes Zendesk different is our unique approach to AI, built in service of humans. Purpose-built for CX, Zendesk AI understands the nuances of customer interactions, delivering faster, more accurate and personalised experiences from day one.
