Discover Gartner’s insights on how AI chatbots combined with human agents create a powerful hybrid model that boosts customer satisfaction, reduces costs, and drives business success in customer service.
Gartner is a leading global research and advisory company known for its in-depth market analysis and trusted insights that help businesses make informed decisions. Their research on customer service trends has highlighted a significant shift to chatbot-centric support.
In Gartner’s 2018 report, chatbot technology, often called virtual customer assistants (VCAs) was expected to be part of one in four customer support operations by 2020, jumping from less than 2% in 2017. Today, in 2025, chatbots are even more common, thanks to big improvements in artificial intelligence (AI), natural language processing (NLP), and machine learning.
If you’re a business leader or customer service professional wondering how to keep up, here’s the good news: chatbots are powerful tools, but they work best when paired with real human agents. This smart pairing helps businesses deliver better service, save money, and keep customers happy.
Customers want quick answers, and many expect to get them on digital platforms like websites, messaging apps, or social media. AI Chatbots are great at handling common questions and simple tasks instantly and 24/7. They free up your human agents to focus on tougher problems that require empathy and creative solutions.
Advances in AI, especially in understanding natural language and matching customer intent, mean chatbots can manage more complex conversations than ever before. According to recent studies, companies using chatbots combined with human agents report:
While AI chatbots can solve many issues on their own, they aren't flawless. Sometimes a customer’s problem is intricate or sensitive, needing a human touch. Without the right support, customers may get frustrated, harming your brand reputation.
That’s why the best practice today is a hybrid customer service model where chatbots handle routine queries and escalate more complex cases smoothly to human agents. This approach ensures customers don’t get stuck with robotic responses when they need real help.
Imagine a customer chatting with a bot to track their delivery. The AI chatbot instantly provides a status update. But then the order is delayed due to unforeseen issues. When the customer asks why, the chatbot recognizes the complexity of the question and transfers the chat to a trained human agent.
This seamless handoff:
Major brands like Sephora and Bank of America have used this mix of AI and humans to improve service quality and efficiency.
Read more on When and How AI Chatbot Conversations Escalate Human Agents
Beyond chatbots, Gartner and other experts predict immersive technologies like augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) will play bigger roles in customer support by the end of this decade. Imagine using AR to help customers troubleshoot appliances remotely or VR for virtual product demos. In addition, emotion-detection AI and voice assistants will further personalize and deepen customer interactions.
Customer service is becoming increasingly chatbot-centric, but AI alone won’t solve every challenge. The winning formula is a hybrid approach where intelligent chatbots offer speed and efficiency, and human agents bring empathy and critical thinking. Businesses embracing this model not only streamline operations but also build stronger, long-lasting customer relationships in a fast-evolving digital world.
Whether you’re just beginning your chatbot journey or refining an existing system, remember: the goal isn’t just automation. It’s delivering the best customer experience possible.
Explore the best free AI chatbots for ecommerce customer service at MagicTalk and start transforming your customer support today!
Hanna is an industry trend analyst dedicated to tracking the latest advancements and shifts in the market. With a strong background in research and forecasting, she identifies key patterns and emerging opportunities that drive business growth. Hanna’s work helps organizations stay ahead of the curve by providing data-driven insights into evolving industry landscapes.