It was one of those sliding door moments as Sundar Pichai presented a groundbreaking innovation at this year’s Google I/O developer conference: Google Duplex, artificial intelligence (AI) that is not only able to participate in human dialogue but is also able to initiate and lead it independently — with all the ingredients that make up a human conversation.
Google Duplex puts pauses in the right places, utters "ohhhs" and "ummms" and interacts in a profoundly human way. Skeptics say that this will lead to technology finally taking over humans. In reply, optimists state that AI is leaving its nerd status behind and is emerging as a valuable everyday helper. Both sides probably agree that Google Duplex could lead to the dawn of a new AI era where machines will talk to machines while supporting humans. For instance, Google Duplex in tandem with Suki would make life so much easier for both doctors and patients.
Google Duplex Is The Prototype For Scaling Human Intelligence
Reduced to the lowest common denominator, AI is an attempt to replicate human decision-making structures in an unstructured environment. Developers program a computer so it can deal with problems on its own. Machines learn and automate intelligent behavior that was previously unique to us as humans.
By combining the multifaceted thought patterns of the human brain with enormous computing power, intelligence becomes arbitrarily scalable — to a point where our brain can no longer keep pace. While we can easily decide while looking at an image of an animal whether it’s a cat or tiger, AI would far outshine us if we had to make the same decision within seconds for 100,000 images.
With Google Duplex, it is not only the scalability of the human mind that reaches new dimensions. Interaction between man and machine also receives an authentic human touch: Machines take on human form. This opens up completely new avenues of application, especially in an area of our everyday life that is traditionally characterized by human interaction, namely customer care.
Personal Customer Service Becomes Scalable
Customer service is a complex and particularly costly business. Customer care organizations have been working for many years to achieve economies of scale and to reduce costs in processing customer requests by using automated self-service solutions. Chatbots, FAQs and apps — all of these fail because many users don’t accept them and prefer to have personal contact when it comes to solving a problem.
With conversational AI à la Google Duplex, two parameters that previously stood in contrast to each other can now be combined: personal service based on human voice and limitless scalability through artificial intelligence and automation. Different time zones, language barriers, Sundays and public holidays will no longer limit a brand’s accessibility for its customers. Machines that have become human can answer customers’ questions in a personal dialogue around the clock.
Faster Data Analysis Maximizes Customer Experience
Data is the hand tool that ensures excellent customer service. Customer care always works particularly well when service processes are continuously measured and optimized using data. Up to now, however, data evaluation has failed primarily because of the human factor. Global customer care operations are based on a complex ecosystem that involves hundreds of partners such as call centers, repair shops and logistics operators. Process and data standards are often lacking and the information exchanged is worthless if it is not processed quickly and efficiently.
Thanks to lightning-fast and independent information processing, AI ensures more efficient processes and more effective service at a level that would be unattainable by manpower alone. Prescriptive and predictive analysis detects patterns and provides precious insights into customer behavior and service processes. This increases speed, ameliorates service quality and, ultimately, enhances customer loyalty.
Man And Machine Merge Through AI
According to Gartner, only about 10% of all dialogues between a brand and its customers will take place via call centers in the future. While the majority of all interactions take place via digital channels such as social media, chatbots and online self-help, the call center will have a new role to play: Customers will turn to call centers when they have complex questions and problems, whereas they will solve simple inquiries via self-service.
At the same time, customer expectations regarding response time and the competence of call center agents are rising. Customers generally allow a company a maximum of 10 minutes to solve their problem. The variety of questions is growing and with it the challenge facing call centers to be able to answer them competently at any time.
AI supports call center agents in processing incoming requests by analyzing the content and providing service employees with appropriate suggestions on how to respond. This enables customer care organizations to meet the customer’s need for personal support while making the most of AI’s automation capabilities. It may sound like a paradox to the skeptic, but in this case, it is AI that ensures the human touch remains in customer care in the long term.
