Cisco has released a new report, predicting that agentic AI will handle 68 percent of contact center conversations by 2028.
It also suggests that agentic AI will help automate as many as 56 percent of interactions by 2026.
Cisco's report includes a survey of almost 8,000 business and technical decision-makers in 30 countries.
Summarizing its findings, Cisco described agentic AI as "the most transformative technology to impact customer experience in decades."
Its customer contact automation predictions mirror those of Gartner earlier this year.
Indeed, the research firm stated that by 2029, agentic AI will autonomously resolve 80 percent of routine customer service issues, resulting in a 30 percent drop in operational costs.
In addition to assisting interaction-handling, Cisco’s study also revealed that 93 percent of respondents believe agentic AI will empower B2B tech vendors to deliver more personalized, proactive, and predictive services.
Moreover, 88 percent are confident this AI-driven approach will support their organization in reaching broader objectives.
In the foreword of the report, Liz Centoni, EVP and Chief Customer Experience Officer at Cisco, proclaimed that these findings were proof that CX is "entering a new era with agentic AI as the transformative force leading the way.
"Agentic AI will fundamentally change the very nature of services, enabling customer experience teams to make every interaction personalized, proactive, and predictive across every customer touchpoint.
We can now deliver on our ultimate goal: making every customer feel like they are the only customer!
Centoni also outlined some more specific ways in which agentic AI will help resolve longstanding customer pain points in enterprise environments.
The EVP pointed to network issues caused by misconfigurations, claiming that agentic systems are "poised to eliminate" this problem and deliver smarter networks, enhanced security, and greater team productivity.
While the report did primarily unpack the benefits and positive sentiment surrounding agentic AI, it also addressed some of the challenges that this might present.
More Advanced AI = Higher Customer Expectations
Undoubtedly, the excitement around agentic AI is enhanced due to customer service and experience, as businesses and professionals become more accustomed to deploying and operating AI solutions.