The customer experience (CX) as we’ve known it has often been less than ideal. Think about it: disconnected channels, systems that don’t talk to each other, and agents scrambling to find basic information about the person they’re trying to help. This fragmented approach creates frustration—for both the customer and the organization. That’s the “old CX.”
At the Five9 CX Summit in Barcelona, the spotlight was firmly on “The New CX,” a transformative approach that combines AI-driven innovation, hyper-personalization, and seamless integration. This vision is about more than fixing the cracks in the old model. It’s about creating a fully connected and intelligent experience, where every interaction—whether it’s with a contact center agent or an automated system—is informed, efficient, and genuinely helpful.
Insights from the Summit
The New CX starts with a complete picture of the customer. Instead of piecing together disconnected data from different systems, organizations are leveraging AI to unify insights across channels—voice, email, chat, social media, and more. This means that whether a customer is talking to an agent or interacting with a virtual assistant, the experience feels consistent and tailored to their needs.
At the heart of this transformation are tools like Five9’s AI Agents. These are more than just chatbots. They blend advanced AI models to automate self-service tasks, offering customers quick resolutions while empowering businesses with greater control and trust. And when a human touch is needed, agents step in armed with all the context they need to provide a seamless transition.
The Summit also highlighted a major strategic move for Five9: their acquisition of Acqueon earlier this year. Acqueon specializes in real-time revenue execution platforms and outbound engagement solutions. This acquisition expands Five9’s capabilities beyond service organizations to include sales-focused applications. By integrating Acqueon’s technology, Five9 now offers omnichannel outreach and journey orchestration, making it easier for businesses to proactively engage customers across multiple channels.
For example, a restaurant chain using Five9 could handle inbound customer requests to book tables using AI Agents and bots. But with Acqueon’s outbound capabilities, the same system could automatically reach out to loyal customers or waiting-list patrons when tables become available, inviting them to book. This seamless integration of service and sales creates a more diverse and powerful use case, ensuring service teams can effectively support revenue-generating activities like bookings, follow-ups, and upselling.
Looking Beyond: My Observations on the Future
While the Summit focused on the here-and-now of AI in CX, it’s hard not to imagine how the future could evolve. As telcos embark on their network API journey—opening up their networks, making them more intelligent and secure—they create exciting new opportunities to blend telco capabilities with AI-powered CX.
Here’s what’s particularly interesting: instead of just reselling Five9 solutions, telcos could enhance them with network-specific capabilities, such as:
• Location Intelligence: Secure, real-time location data from the network can support context-aware customer interactions, such as geofencing for targeted offers or location-specific service escalation.
• Dynamic Bandwidth Allocation: By dynamically prioritizing bandwidth during customer interactions (e.g., video troubleshooting or rapid image uploads), telcos can ensure seamless experiences.
• Enhanced Security: Telcos’ authentication and fraud detection capabilities could integrate into CX workflows, giving customers greater confidence and peace of mind.
This convergence between network APIs and AI-driven CX offers a glimpse of a future where programmable communications, intelligent networks, and customer-centric AI combine to deliver truly seamless experiences.
The Challenge of Adoption
Interestingly, the CPaaS industry has been working on solving similar problems for years, making it a rich source of insights for modern contact centers. CPaaS providers have long championed programmable APIs, flexible integrations, and omnichannel communication to enable seamless customer interactions. By embracing these principles and combining them with AI capabilities, contact centers can accelerate their journey toward the New CX. This evolution requires a mindset shift—from managing silos to building adaptable, programmable frameworks that prioritize customer experience across every touchpoint.
Of course, transforming the customer experience isn’t just about having the right technology. Enterprise adoption is key. In an era where everyone is talking about AI, what sets leaders apart is their ability to tell compelling, relatable stories about its value. Five9 has made a strong start here, with its emphasis on storytelling and clear messaging around “The New CX.” But there’s still a lot of work to do—both for them and their partners, such as telcos, who are also sharing their own narratives about secure, flexible, and intelligent networks.
To truly drive adoption, marketing must resonate with enterprises at every level, bridging the gap between AI-driven tools and the secure, programmable networks that can empower them. Aligning these narratives will be critical in building trust and showcasing the tangible benefits of this new approach to CX.
The Opportunity for Collaboration
It’s an exciting time for the CPaaS Acceleration Alliance as we look to welcome Five9 into the fold. Their vision for The New CX aligns closely with our mission to accelerate innovation and adoption of programmable communications. With partners like BT and Thrivin already exploring the potential of AI-driven CX in markets like Africa, there’s tremendous opportunity for collaboration and impact.
Looking Ahead
The New CX isn’t just a trend—it’s a fundamental shift in how organizations connect with their customers. By embracing AI, programmable technologies, telco-driven network APIs, and now outbound capabilities, businesses can transform CX from a challenge into a competitive advantage. Five9’s leadership in this space is inspiring, and as they continue to innovate, the line between contact centers and programmable communications will only continue to blur.
The future of CX is here, and it’s intelligent, connected, and customer-first. Let’s build it together.
My lifetime in IT and telecoms has been dedicated to innovation, building bridges and creating change. From the early days of cloud communications to working with operators on innovations and business development, and currently emphasizing APIs, CPaaS/CX and AI, my journey has been one of continuous evolution.
As founding partner at CPaaS Acceleration Alliance and The Next Cloud I'm privileged to help global telcos and techcos thrive in a fast changing world - through events, community building, strategy and global business development. I thrive on challenges and change, strategizing in cloud communications, and bringing people together for mutual success. Travel and continuous learning are my passions.
I believe the global communications industry is pivoting to prioritize customer experience and impactful solutions over mere technology and platforms, and we can tackle societal challenges by merging the strengths of corporates and innovators within new ecosystems.
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