Inside the Conversational AI Revolution: What 5,000+ Consumers and Businesses Told Us

Inside the Conversational AI Revolution: What 5,000+ Consumers and Businesses Told Us

Customer support used to be purely transactional—a means to an end. A customer had a problem, a brand fixed it, and the interaction ended there.

Today, that model is evolving. Support still solves issues, but it’s also a chance to strengthen relationships. With the right data and AI, brands can instantly gain the context they need to deliver personalized, proactive care that drives satisfaction and long-term loyalty. 

But while this is the ideal for conversational AI (CAI), reality often falls short. Response latency, endless menu trees, confusing loops, and low resolution rates still leave modern customers frustrated—but the technology is advancing fast, and the gap between expectation and experience is starting to close.

To uncover where businesses are excelling, where they’re missing the mark, and what’s next for conversational AI, Twilio surveyed 4,800 consumers and 457 business leaders worldwide. The findings are captured in our Inside the Conversational AI Revolution report, a data-driven look at how sales and support are changing in the age of AI. Let’s dive into a few of the report’s key findings:

1. Resilient by design: Modular tech for a moving target

While conversational AI is a resource and cost-intensive investment, many businesses still see its value and are investing heavily in the technology. In fact, 63% of organizations are in the final or fully deployed stages of building conversational AI experiences across both sales and support use cases. 

Most businesses are prioritizing flexibility and modularity: only 19% rely on a single model for all use cases, while 81% mix and match models to meet specific needs. This approach helps avoid lock-in, which is especially important as LLMs continue to advance. Today, 70% of organizations have fully customizable conversational AI solutions, 33% of which were built in-house and 37% developed with external support. The new winning pattern is modular, multi-model, and measured — designed to modernize incrementally, upgrade rapidly, and adopt emerging technology as it arrives.

2. Speed isn’t enough to win over consumers

There’s no doubt that AI can win against a human in terms of speed, but humans still have the upper hand when it comes to emotional understanding and acting with empathy. While 92% of consumers say that AI typically replies in under 30 seconds when they reach out, they’re also open to waiting twice as long to talk to a real person–up to 8.5 minutes versus  just 4.3 minutes for AI. Speed is still important, but to stand out, businesses must make every interaction feel natural.

Where are current conversational AI experiences failing to meet customer expectations? AI wins in convenience and speed, but it can’t always give customers the service they need. In fact, 66% say AI doesn’t always understand what they’re asking and 49% of consumers say AI wasn’t able to resolve their issues. The good news: while current CAI experiences fall short of expectations, the landscape is evolving fast to close the gap. Customers who interacted with AI just a few months ago are far more satisfied (67%) than those who last used it over three months ago (45%), a clear sign of how quickly experiences are improving.

3. The hybrid frontline: Humans and AI, together

While 83% of business leaders believe conversational AI can replace human agents, consumers disagree. In fact, 78% say it’s critical to be able to switch from AI to a human when needed.

That doesn’t mean consumers don’t want AI. Many actually prefer it over dealing with a human for simple transactional tasks like tracking orders (41%), sharing product details (38%), answering basic questions (35%), and making recommendations (32%). However, when issues get complex or emotional, they want a human who can listen, understand, and resolve the problem.

The best companies will use AI to power efficient self-service for quick fixes, freeing up human agents for the moments that truly need them. AI can still drive efficiency by triaging requests, gathering context, and preparing information so humans can step in ready to help with empathy and full context.

Access even more conversational AI insights

The highlights above are just a preview. Explore the complete Inside the Conversational AI Revolution report for insights into:

• How businesses are adopting conversational AI

• What’s holding back consumer trust

• How to build a stronger, hybrid frontline

• How to create AI experiences that leave a lasting impression

Or, chat directly with our AI agent powered by Twilio ConversationRelay to try the technology for yourself and learn more about the data and report.