8×8’s Vision: How AI is Revolutionizing Customer Experience
▼ Summary
– 8×8’s Analyst Summit 2025 highlighted its shift toward an AI-enabled, integrated communications intelligence platform focused on business outcomes, not just transactions.
– The event emphasized the blurring boundaries between UCaaS and CCaaS, with buyers demanding seamless, AI-enhanced ecosystems for customer experience (CX).
– AI-powered CX interactions saw significant growth, including an 84% increase in usage, 160% rise in voice AI, and 130% growth in self-service volumes.
– 8×8’s strategy includes embedding AI holistically across platforms, leveraging tools like Journey IQ and AI Orchestrator for predictive insights and seamless bot-to-agent transitions.
– Partnerships with companies like NICE and Verint, along with a focus on back-office integration, are key to delivering cohesive CX across entire businesses.
The customer experience landscape is undergoing a dramatic transformation, driven by intelligent technologies that bridge communication gaps and deliver measurable business results. At 8×8’s recent Analyst Summit, company leadership painted a compelling picture of how artificial intelligence is reshaping interactions between businesses and their customers, not as a standalone feature, but as the foundation of modern engagement strategies.
Traditionally recognized for its unified communications and contact center solutions, 8×8 has evolved into a comprehensive communications intelligence platform focused on delivering tangible outcomes rather than just facilitating digital transactions. This shift mirrors broader industry changes where the lines between different communication services continue to blur, giving way to integrated ecosystems powered by AI.
Key executives highlighted several striking metrics demonstrating this transformation. Over the past year, AI-powered customer interactions surged by 84%, with voice-based AI engagements growing an astonishing 160%. Self-service adoption jumped 130%, while SMS communications saw a 41% increase. Behind these numbers lies a strategic philosophy: technology should enhance human connections rather than replace them. As company leaders repeatedly emphasized, “AI isn’t the product, it’s the experience it enables.”
Central to this vision are tools like Journey IQ and AI Orchestrator, which provide predictive analytics and smooth transitions between automated systems and human agents. These solutions address a critical challenge in today’s marketplace, maintaining seamless customer journeys as businesses increasingly adopt multi-agent AI environments. The ability to intelligently route interactions between bots, live support, and various channels has become a competitive differentiator.
Strategic partnerships form another pillar of 8×8’s approach, with integrations spanning CRM platforms, compliance solutions, payment systems, and industry-specific applications. Collaborations with companies like NICE, Verint, and Cognigy allow the platform to meet complex enterprise needs without requiring clients to piece together disparate point solutions. Particularly noteworthy is the knowledge management partnership with Verint, equipping support teams with AI-driven contextual guidance to improve resolution times and service quality.
Perhaps most significantly, discussions at the summit revealed growing consensus that exceptional customer experiences require alignment across entire organizations, not just front-line departments. Back-office operations, often overlooked in CX strategies, are now recognized as vital components in delivering consistent, personalized service. This holistic perspective reflects a maturation in how businesses approach customer relationships, where every touchpoint contributes to the overall brand experience.
As organizations navigate this evolving landscape, the message is clear: successful customer engagement demands more than isolated technological upgrades. It requires strategic integration of AI capabilities, cross-functional collaboration, and partner ecosystems, all working in concert to create meaningful connections at scale.
(Source: ZDNET)
