Generative AI is the talk of the town. It has captured the eye of the masses and leaders alike. The imperative and promise of AI transforming the business seems immense. The GenAI hype also brings together with it enthusiasm and concerns on the role of AI in human society typically.

Envisaging a society with AI is looking more real than science fiction. Hence it is usually more encouraging to see debates on ethics of AI, regulation for AI and possibility of Sentient AI or Artificial General Intelligence. There are also fears and concerns about how the role of AI will impact jobs and the way it could replace humans in the approaching future. News headlines like below may even make one jump to conclusions, painting a negative picture for the role of AI in society. Nevertheless, this topic is far more nuanced than that.

Role of AI is extremely debated. Even in popular culture for instance, Wall-E, a Pixar movie (one in every of my favourite) shows AI in each roles. Constructive companions for humans in the shape of protagonist Wall-E and Eve, and a contradicting controlling antagonist AUTO.

Let’s take for instance a case for Generative AI in domains reminiscent of customer support and customer experience. The balancing act for creating a pleasant customer experience and reducing cost of service will all the time push the frontiers on this domain. This can also be one in every of the explanations we’re seeing AI Chatbots slowly becoming ubiquitous within the “un-assisted” care category. For instance, checking your bank balance, getting a press release etc are higher handled through these automated systems of engagements, allowing customer care agents to concentrate on cases that require decision making.

Some people could also be anxious that in future this may lead to finish automation via AI. Let’s for the sake of argument imagine this to be true. With the intention to achieve this, businesses can have to Empower the AI to make decisions. Decisions which have direct monetary implications.

Call centres are direct touch points for purchasers to satisfy business. Customers are humans, emotional, unpredictable, forgetful and imperfect. Regardless that GenAI may generate empathetic responses, will it settle on empathy?

Let’s take one such instance from my very own experience. I disputed a transaction with my bank as I simply forgot one in every of the web sites where I had given my details. Customer support representative knew that there’s a high probability I may need forgotten this, but still raised the priority to their teams. Later, I remembered and I reached out to them and got my request cancelled. The shopper service agent despite almost knowing I used to be at fault made me feel heard. I ponder if there was an AI, will it have listened to me if the probability of me being at fault was higher. AI would have asked me to recollect/reconsider (politely could also be) and most definitely snubbed me. Even when AI allowed to reverse the costs (hence Empowered to dispense money), wouldn’t or not it’s vulnerable to losses for business if there isn’t a human within the loop.

One other instance is when my Estate Agent forgot to inform me that the water bill is included as a part of constructing services. Since there was a unique agency maintaining the constructing this tiny detail slipped through the cracks. I registered myself with the water company and three month later I got a shock after I got the bill for 35 flats. My first response was that the water company got it unsuitable, they may need estimated unsuitable or had unsuitable meter readings. So I reached out to customer care, they were surprised in addition to there was no previous instance of this at this property up to now. They gave me an address to the water meter and after I checked it was in a locked cabinet. After I reached constructing services it was revealed that the bill is included and individual residents usually are not subjected to pay individually. Imagine train an AI with circumstances either unique or unpredictable like above.

Call me an optimist (or person with recency bias), I feel the role of AI will probably be of a companion. I had to attend half-hour before I could consult with the water company customer support agent. Perhaps in the longer term when AI is handling simpler, non-decisive cases, I’ll get to a human faster.