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3 minute read
The Brief: 8x8 has announced new AI-driven capabilities across its Customer Experience (CX) platform, aimed at improving automation and operational efficiency. The platform now integrates contact center, unified communications, and communication APIs into a single AI-enabled solution to streamline workflows and support customer engagement strategies. In the first quarter of fiscal 2026, 8x8 reported a 75% increase in Intelligent Customer Assistant contracts year-over-year, alongside notable growth in AI-based interactions. Additional features include real-time agent guidance, secure payment processing, and multilingual summarization.
Source: 8x88x8 Enhances CX Platform with Advanced AI for Better Customer Engagement
Analyst Perspective: 8x8’s latest AI-driven updates focus on creating operational efficiency and customer-centric workflows. Intelligent Customer Assistant has shown notable adoption, reflecting businesses’ need for scalable, automated solutions that reduce agent dependency. Smart Assist and Conversation Intelligence offer data-driven guidance, equipping support teams with real-time insights to enhance customer interactions. Security remains a priority through features like Secure Pay, which supports PCI-compliant transactions via virtual agents. Meanwhile, Knowledge AI transforms static resources into actionable self-service content, cutting down resolution times. These capabilities, combined with expanded API integration, cater to omnichannel strategies where businesses interact with customers through multiple digital platforms. The enhancements point toward a platform designed to balance cost optimization with enhanced experience delivery.
Expanding AI-Powered Engagement Across CX
Adoption of AI within the 8x8 CX Platform continued to increase in the first quarter of fiscal 2026. Intelligent Customer Assistant contracts grew 75% compared to the same period last year, driven by demand for digital and voice automation.
Granted, these growth rates are based upon a product that was introduced in April of 2024. The high numbers are more indicative of early customer acceptance, rather than exceptional growth. But when you combine this with another stat that 8x8 shared, in which AI-powered interactions increased 150% year over year, with voice AI accounting for the majority, you can see a pattern indicating customer acceptance of not only AI-enablement, but of the 8x8 solution.
Additionally, auto attendant interactions supported by AI and the Intelligent Directory experienced more than a 21-fold increase quarter-over-quarter. These trends indicate organizations are prioritizing automated solutions for customer engagement, aiming to reduce response times and enhance efficiency without diminishing the quality of interactions.
API Innovations Driving Multi-Channel Customer Connections
8x8 reported strong growth in the use of its communication APIs during the first quarter of fiscal 2026, reflecting increased demand for flexible, multi-channel communication. API-driven interactions grew 39% year-over-year across messaging, voice, and video. SMS usage increased by 35%, while messaging activity through applications such as WhatsApp, RCS, Viber, Zalo, and LINE expanded by more than 220% compared to the same quarter last year and 55% from the previous quarter. These figures suggest businesses are leveraging APIs to strengthen engagement strategies across customer-preferred platforms. Through supporting diverse communication channels, organizations can deliver more responsive and consistent experiences while maintaining operational control through a centralized solution.
New Customers Across Diverse Industries
Recent customer implementations highlight how the platform is being adopted by organizations across various sectors.
A well-known public university deployed the 8x8 Contact Center to support approximately 2,000 employees with tailored service capabilities. In the technology sector, an AI voice automation provider selected 8x8 Voice to facilitate global expansion, emphasizing the solution’s voice quality and integration capabilities. An Australian construction technology company introduced 8x8 SMS APIs to improve support processes, while a major Philippine retail group adopted the same API solution to strengthen campaign visibility and engagement efficiency.
These deployments highlight the platform’s flexibility and ability to meet requirements for automation, security, and scalability across industries that rely on consistent, cost-effective customer interaction models.
Evaluating the Impact of 8x8’s AI-Driven Enhancements on CX
8x8’s recent platform improvements indicate a commitment to aligning customer experience solutions with evolving business requirements using AI-driven features. Through combining automation tools, conversational intelligence, and secure transaction options, the platform enables organizations to streamline operations while maintaining engagement quality. These enhancements also support broader adoption of omnichannel strategies, ensuring customers can interact through preferred communication methods without compromising consistency.
For businesses managing high volumes of interactions, the inclusion of real-time guidance and knowledge-based self-service helps reduce handling time and improve resolution accuracy. Challenges may arise around data compliance, interoperability, and system integration for complex environments, but these can be mitigated with proper implementation frameworks and monitoring.
Notably, AI-powered interactions rose 150% year-over-year, with voice AI expanding at a sevenfold rate. While Intelligent Customer Assistant contracts also showed strong adoption, posting 75% growth since launch, the more measured 7% quarterly growth in the overall 8x8 CX solution provides a clearer benchmark of sustainable momentum. Taken together, these trends suggest that organizations are steadily embracing AI-enabled engagement within 8x8’s platform, balancing early enthusiasm with long-term adoption patterns that support both efficiency and improved customer experience.
