Receptionists are not going to be receptive to this.
Zoom has launched Virtual Agent for Zoom Phone, an AI-powered receptionist that can handle customer calls 24/7 without human intervention. The no-code tool allows companies to replace or supplement traditional receptionists by greeting callers, processing requests, and routing calls autonomously across six languages at launch.
What you should know: Virtual Agent operates as a fully automated digital receptionist that promises to reduce missed calls and hold times for businesses.
- The AI agent can greet callers naturally, process their requests, and initiate next steps without requiring human pickup.
- Available in English, Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, and Japanese, with additional languages planned.
- Companies can train the agent using existing documents or by pointing it to their website, requiring no coding expertise.
How it works: The setup process is designed for simplicity, allowing businesses to deploy AI receptionists without technical expertise.
- Organizations upload existing company documents or direct the system to their website for training.
- The AI learns from this content to handle calls autonomously and route them appropriately.
- The system can efficiently get customers “one step closer to a resolution” before involving human staff.
Key use cases: Zoom highlighted several industry-specific applications where Virtual Agent can provide immediate value.
- Healthcare organizations can use it for booking appointments.
- Retail businesses can leverage it for confirming stock availability and answering product questions.
- Financial services companies can provide automated updates to customers.
What they’re saying: Zoom executives emphasized the seamless integration capabilities and time-saving potential of the new AI agent.
- “By combining AI that can listen, understand, and take action with the reach of Zoom Phone, our concierge virtual agent provides seamless and personalized support to all callers,” explained Smita Hashim, Zoom’s Chief Product Officer.
- “The result is a faster, more personalized, and more scalable experience for everyone,” Hashim added.
Beyond phone calls: Zoom also enhanced its AI Companion feature with new meeting scheduling capabilities that handle logistics automatically.
- The updated AI Companion can find suitable meeting times, coordinate invites, track responses, and suggest alternatives.
- According to Zoom, these improvements give “teams more time to focus on the discussion itself, not the logistics.”
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