In this episode of Reimagining the Contact Center, Marc Bernstein sits down with customer experience legend Shep Hyken to unpack the evolving relationship between AI and human empathy in customer service.
Together, they dive into: the rise of self-service everything, the danger of “artificial incompetence," why empathy still matters—even in a world ruled by bots, the tension between customer convenience and human connection, what a no-human future might mean for loyalty, trust, and brand memory.
Whether you're building an AI roadmap or just trying to keep your CX human, this episode will challenge your assumptions and sharpen your strategy.
Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction
01:33 AI for Consumers
15:25 Human Empathy
17:35 Artificial Incompetence
22:40 A Future With No Humans
33:04 What Companies Will Still Hire People?
40:15 AI in 3 Years
