Let’s face it: telcos no longer have the luxury of waiting on the sidelines. In a hyper-connected, always-on world, customer experience has become the battleground where brand preference is won or lost. What was once a conversation about minutes and megabytes is now about moments and meaning. And at the center of this shift is telecom AI.
But we are not talking about the AI of 2019 – rules-based chatbots or basic predictive models. We have moved into the era of Agentic AI: intelligent, self-learning systems that don’t just automate tasks but take autonomous decisions, interpret context, and elevate the human experience.
Still, even with this tremendous promise, the telecom industry finds itself at a crossroads. According to latest studies, a leading telco saw more than a 10% boost in Net Promoter Score by refining its customer service with generative AI. Another saw marketing conversion rates surge 40% after adopting GenAI to personalize outbound campaigns. And across the board, cost takeout from AI-enabled operations ranges anywhere from 25% to 30% when done right.
So why are so many operators still stuck in pilot mode?
The answer lies in how AI is being applied. Many telcos continue to treat it as an add-on, something to layer over existing systems. What’s truly needed is a rethinking of the architecture, operations, and mindset. Fragmented data systems continue to choke insights. Legacy infrastructure resists integration. And let’s not ignore the elephant in the room: ‘AI that feels robotic’ erodes trust instead of building it. In a business where empathy is currency, no one wants a support interaction that sounds like it came from a script.
The real power of AI in telecom lies not in automation, but in augmentation. When AI is embedded into the core of how agents work, networks behave, and decisions are made in real time, that’s when transformation starts to feel real.
At Sutherland, we have seen this firsthand. In one instance, we worked with a telecom provider to implement agentic virtual assistants that not only resolved issues autonomously but flagged intent shifts in customer sentiment. That one deployment led to a 60% reduction in average resolution time and a measurable lift in satisfaction scores.
We have also delivered outcomes at the network level – our NetSentinel AI, an advanced AI & machine learning (ML) platform designed for telecom providers. Leveraging predictive analytics and autonomous operations, it proactively identifies and resolves potential service-impacting issues, ensuring seamless, always-on network performance. In one deployment, proactive issue resolution led to a 30-40% reduction in service-impacting incidents and a 30-50% improvement in resolution time, directly enhancing customer satisfaction and retention through stronger uptime and faster service recovery.
These aren’t just efficiency wins. They’re examples of what we at Sutherland define as Digital Outcomes — technology that delivers measurable, strategic impact. Whether it’s reducing churn, driving loyalty, or optimizing costs, the value lies not in AI for its own sake, but in its ability to move the business forward.
It’s the direction the industry is heading — and fast. We are not just implementing use cases anymore. We are witnessing the rise of AI as the operating layer of the future of telecom. And yet, the best deployments are those that don’t lose sight of the human. AI that drives speed and efficiency but never forgets the emotion behind the interaction.
The future of telecom CX won’t be won by the operator that throws the most AI at a problem; it will be led by those who build human AI — systems that learn, yes, but also listen.
This is the challenge. And the opportunity. Let’s make it happen.
Sriram Panchapakesan is Sutherland’s CEO for Telecommunications, Media, Technology, Energy, and Utilities. Sriram has over 25 years of experience in CXO advisory and a strong track record in driving product engineering, analytics, and AI initiatives across the telecom, media, technology, manufacturing, and natural resources industries. He specializes in building and leading high-performance teams to deliver technology-driven business and digital transformation, as well as IT cost optimization programs.
