Can AI-powered customer care agents ever truly match, or surpass, the experience delivered by a skilled human agent? Our latest research report, Consumer Perspectives on Contact Center Agents and Soft Skills: A Comparison Between Live and AI-Powered Agents, takes a hard look at that question, and the answer is more nuanced than you might expect.
Consumers Still Favor Live Agents, but the Gap Is Closing
When consumers were asked to compare their interactions with live agents versus AI-powered agents, the preference for humans was clear: 68% rated live agent interactions as “Better” or “Much Better.” By contrast, only 53% said the same about AI-powered agents when compared to their human counterparts.
That’s a meaningful gap. But here’s what’s equally telling: 71% of consumers said they feel neutral or better about AI as their first point of contact when seeking customer care help. Consumer openness to AI isn’t just growing; it’s accelerating.
So what’s driving that tension between preference and openness? It comes down to expectations.
Performance Over Personality
One of the most striking findings in the research is what consumers actually want from AI. While live agents are expected to bring warmth, empathy, and a human touch, AI is held to a different standard entirely.
Consumers ranked “Being Highly Knowledgeable and Accurate” (14%) and “Being Efficient/Quick” (13%) as the top areas where AI-powered agents perform best. Empathy and fairness? Those lagged significantly behind.
The message is clear: consumers aren’t asking AI to act human. They’re asking it to work.
Complexity Changes Everything
Where consumers draw the line most sharply is around issue complexity. For simple tasks (paying a bill, updating account information), the preference split between live and AI agents is nearly even (52% vs. 48%). But when the issue gets complicated?
58% of consumers prefer a live agent for complex issues, and a striking 81% say access to a live agent is “Extremely Important” or “Somewhat Important” in those moments.
This isn’t just a preference; it’s a signal. When the stakes are higher, consumers want a human who can exercise judgment, show empathy, and navigate nuance. AI’s current capabilities in problem-solving simply haven’t earned that level of trust yet.
What Live Agents Need to Get Better At
The research doesn’t let live agents off the hook either. When consumers were asked which soft skills are most critical for human agents to provide excellent care, “Effective Problem-Solving” (16%) and “Being Highly Knowledgeable” (15%) topped the list.
Here’s the catch: those same skills ranked near the bottom when consumers were asked where live agents are currently performing best. That gap between expectation and reality is an opportunity, and a warning, for any brand investing in contact center training.
The Bigger Picture for CX Leaders
The research makes one thing unmistakably clear: the future of customer experience isn’t human or AI. It’s human and AI working together in ways deliberately designed around what consumers actually need at each stage of their journey.
AI excels at speed, availability, and accuracy. Live agents excel at judgment, empathy, and complex resolution. The organizations that figure out how to orchestrate these strengths (matching the right interaction type to the right resource at the right moment) will be the ones that win on customer experience.
The full report goes deep on soft skill differentials, consumer comfort with AI mimicking human qualities, the impact of language and accent barriers, and specific action items for CX leaders.
