A recent report from Andreessen Horowitz reveals that the global AI voice market reached $5.4 billion in 2024, marking a 25% increase from the previous year. Projections indicate that this market will continue to grow, with an estimated value of $8.7 billion by 2026. Consumers are rapidly adopting voice technology, with 60% of smartphone users regularly using voice assistants in 2024, up from 45% in 2023. This trend highlights the increasing dependence on voice interfaces for everyday tasks, ranging from setting reminders to managing smart home devices.

The report outlines several technological advancements driving the AI voice industry forward, such as improvements in Natural Language Processing (NLP), integration of Edge Computing, and multilingual support. Enhanced NLP algorithms have resulted in more accurate and contextually relevant voice interactions, leading to greater user satisfaction. The implementation of edge computing has minimised latency in voice processing, allowing quicker responses and better performance in voice-enabled devices. Progress in language modelling has broadened the capabilities of voice assistants, enabling them to support multiple languages and serve global audiences. Let’s explore how AI agents can enhance customer support and transform the overall customer experience.

Traditional customer support systems vs AI agents

Time is money, and long waiting times in traditional customer support affect the entire business. According to a study made by Arise, over 60% of customers are willing to wait just one minute or less in a phone queue before they hang up, particularly during peak hours. At the same time, they expect fast resolutions to their issues. Unfortunately, many companies only have a limited number of agents who spend a lot of time dealing with mundane requests. The result? Clogged phone lines and dissatisfied customers. To survive in this competitive landscape, businesses must prioritise efficiency and responsiveness in their customer support strategies. And one of the emerging ways to do this is through AI. But how exactly can AI agents improve the overall customer support experience?

Automating core and repetitive tasks

Call centres were among the first to adopt AI voice agents to create systems capable of answering calls in a human-like way. In the same way, SMEs can leverage this technology to easily automate essential tasks like appointment scheduling. For example, a handyman or mechanic typically answers calls themselves when not doing their job, often missing numerous calls and losing potential clients. Similarly, startups can hire a receptionist who works limited hours, resulting in missed calls. Having a tool that can handle basic questions could significantly benefit small businesses.

Solutions for non-technical users

With the rapid rise of generative AI, the concept of "wrappers" has also evolved. It refers to custom user interfaces (UIs) laid on top of a generative pre-trained transformer (GPT) model, enhancing the technology with user-friendly or purpose-driven differentiators. No-code platforms let customers easily create and implement voice AI assistants without requiring technical skills. For instance, at Synthflow, we offer an intuitive interface that allows users to drag and drop elements to set up voice AI agents tailored for specific tasks, such as scheduling appointments, addressing frequently asked questions, or collecting details from potential customers via phone calls so a human can call them back.

Forwarding more complex customer enquiries

Although voice AI agents can do a lot of tasks, there are still many complex issues and inquiries that require the human touch. In these cases, AI can help by forwarding complex concerns to a human agent. This works by leveraging AI to screen incoming calls according to their complexity – automating simple requests like answering FAQs or scheduling and appointment, which allows human agents to address more complex customer enquiries like product feedback or sales inquiries.

Scalable sales support

When it comes to sales, a significant amount of time is spent on cold-calling and following up on booking calls, especially in the early stages of the process. An AI sales voice assistant could handle outbound calls, automating the process and working to warm up leads. Instead of relying on a representative to answer every question over the phone, you would have an AI system capable of managing all calls and responding appropriately based on the enquiries.

International support

Early adopters of voice AI have a competitive advantage by enhancing efficiency and boosting customer satisfaction, particularly in high-touch industries. Geographically, voice AI agents have been more popular in English-speaking countries; however, recent advancements are now featuring multiple languages and taking into account various regions and dialects. In the US, voice assistant users are expected to grow from 145.1 million in 2023 to 170.3 million in 2028.

The future of AI agents in customer support

AI can’t replace human jobs, but rather help SMEs be more productive and efficient with their available resources. By doing so, AI agents are a step in the right direction towards fixing the broken customer support experience.

There are definitely numerous factors to improve regarding AI agents. First of all, since voice assistants gather and handle personal information, prioritising user privacy and data security is essential. Then it's also crucial to tackle biases in voice recognition systems to deliver accurate services to a wide range of users. Additionally, dealing with different regulations across regions/countries presents challenges for the global implementation of voice-enabled services.

Despite these challenges, voice AI is an unstoppable force. In less than a year, voice AI got 10x better and much more efficient, and OpenAI is launching new artificial intelligence models. AI agents are evolving to operate autonomously, mastering to operate complex tasks with little to no human intervention. And with voice AI agent platforms like Synthflow that can do complex and real-time actions, it’s only bound to get better.

For more startup news, check out the other articles on the website, and subscribe to the magazine for free. Listen to The Cereal Entrepreneur podcast for more interviews with entrepreneurs and big-hitters in the startup ecosystem.