Most consumers hate the idea of AI-generated customer service [Video]

A hot potato: Customer service is one of those corporate functions that consumers love to hate: long hold times, incorrect answers, and less-than-pleasant interactions are all-too-familiar issues. AI could solve all of these problems, at least in theory, and save companies money to boot. But customers hate the idea, according to a recent survey by Gartner. The main reason is that they think AI will make it much harder to reach a human agent.

A majority (64%) of 5,728 people surveyed by Gartner in December 2023 said they would prefer companies not to use AI in their customer service. Additionally, 53% of customers hate the idea so much that they would consider switching to a competitor if they found out a company was going to use AI for customer service.

The survey is timely because customer service leaders are eager …