CX News
Taco Bell rolls back AI ordering
Taco Bell’s experiment with AI order-taking shows how fragile customer trust can be. Glitches and trolling - from endless water requests to botched drink orders - left diners frustrated while human workers had to spend time fixing mistakes, prompting the chain to scale back automation. AI can promise speed and efficiency, but when it undermines reliability and human connection, customer experience takes the biggest hit.
I’ve covered quick service restaurants and differing approaches to adopting AI, like Bojangles using it to expand Spanish-language ordering. The key for success is to think through use cases and keep the human connection at the core.
LA times: Call centers still need humans
Perhaps no surprise after considering how Taco Bell rolled back AI ordering, but the LA Times profiled how call centers are changing with AI. While routine tasks are automated, skilled humans remain essential for complex customer service problems. Clunky IVR systems lead to “zeroing out,” to try and get a human agent, but voice-powered AI poses the opportunity to connect callers with the right department on the first try.
Office Depot launches 15-minute pickup guarantee
Office Depot’s new 15-Minute Pickup Promise raises the bar for customer convenience, guaranteeing online and mobile orders will be ready fast—or customers get a $15 coupon. By offering near-instant fulfillment, the retailer aims to boost confidence and loyalty, though success hinges on delivering consistently.
Retailers know the logistical challenges of buy online, pick-up in store. If Office Depot can consistently pull this off, it can take back market share by offering the convenience of online shopping with the instant gratification of in-store shopping.
Amazon is launching customer service in French Sign Language
Starting in October, Amazon will offer French Sign Language (LSF) customer support, enabling 200,000 deaf and hard-of-hearing customers in France to connect via video interpreters with no additional software required. This is a win for making customer service more inclusive, accessible, and responsive.
AI Headlines
Gartner Survey Finds 53% of Consumers Distrust AI-Powered Search Results - It finds that consumers find AI summaries most useful when initially exploring products but the perceived usefulness of these summaries declines further through the purchasing process, likely due to the mistrust
Why Apple is sidestepping Silicon Valley’s AI bloodsport - Apple’s doubling down on innovation via hardware, only mentioning AI a few times during its marketing event on Tuesday
From $1M to $10M ARR in 6 Months: How Fyxer is Winning AI Productivity - founders of an executive assistant agency used that core first-party data to launch an AI product to save time
Developers joke about “coding like cavemen” as AI service suffers major outage - Anthropic's three main services had a a half-hour simultaneous outage on Wednesday
I created my own AI medical team. It changed the way doctors treat my cancer - how one patient is using AI to uncover tailored solutions
Tune In
The gap between AI buzzwords and usable CX tools is real, and we’re focused on bridging it.
We’re working directly with operators and CX leaders to turn AI strategy into action and we’re bringing those voices into the room at CX NOW.
This October, Kustomer is hosting two exclusive events for senior CX and operations executives:
🗽 NYC – October 14 at Ascent Lounge
🌴 LA – October 22 at Playa Studios
Each is a one-day, in-person experience focused on what’s actually working in CX today, from AI and automation to data strategy and operational leadership.
You’ll hear directly from the leaders building what’s next, connect with peers facing the same challenges, and leave with ideas you can put into action.
I’ll personally be at the New York City event and I would love to chat all things CX news if you’re able to attend!
Space is limited - request your seat!
