#295 Fergal Reid: Why Your Bots Fail and How Agents Fix Your Customer Support
This episode is sponsored by AGNTCY. Unlock agents at scale with an open Internet of Agents.
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Why do so many chatbots fail in the real world, and how can AI agents actually fix customer support?
In this episode of Eye on AI, host Craig Smith explores how teams move beyond scripted bots to production-grade AI agents that resolve real issues across chat, email, and voice. We look at what makes agents reliable at scale, how to configure them safely, and how to manage them like digital workers alongside your human team.
Learn how leading companies approach agent onboarding and governance, which pitfalls to avoid, and which metrics matter most for success, including resolution rate, CSAT, and cost per resolution. You will also hear how to enable actions like refunds and returns through secure procedures, design human handoff that customers appreciate, and build an omnichannel rollout plan that scales responsibly.
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The Customer Service Revolution: Building Fin, with Eoghan McCabe & Fergal Reid of Intercom
Today Eoghan McCabe and Fergal Reid of Intercom join The Cognitive Revolution to discuss building their AI customer service agent Fin, exploring how they achieved a 65% resolution rate through rigorous optimization and custom model training rather than relying on base model improvements, while pioneering outcome-based pricing at $0.99 per resolution.
Shownotes brought to you by Notion AI Meeting Notes - try one month for free at: https://notion.com/lp/nathan
Sponsors:
Linear:
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AGNTCY:
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Claude:
Claude is the AI collaborator that understands your entire workflow and thinks with you to tackle complex problems like coding and business strategy. Sign up and get 50% off your first 3 months of Claude Pro at https://claude.ai/tcr
Shopify:
Shopify powers millions of businesses worldwide, handling 10% of U.S. e-commerce. With hundreds of templates, AI tools for product descriptions, and seamless marketing campaign creation, it's like having a design studio and marketing team in one. Start your $1/month trial today at https://shopify.com/cognitive
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CHAPTERS:
(00:00) About the Episode
(03:43) Keeping Up With AI
(09:56) Evaluating Models and Evals
(13:04) Incumbents vs. Startups
(18:54) Product Risk and Judgment (Part 1)
(19:00) Sponsors: Linear | AGNTCY
(21:34) Product Risk and Judgment (Part 2)
(23:42) The Klarna Layoff Story (Part 1)
(32:11) Sponsors: Claude | Shopify
(36:13) The Klarna Layoff Story (Part 2)
(36:14) Driving Resolution Rate
(45:00) Intelligence Isn't the Bottleneck
(50:10) Closing the Automation Gap
(56:20) Human vs. AI Accuracy
(01:01:03) The Nuance of Speed
(01:04:48) Considering Paradigm Changes
(01:09:31) Outcome-Based Pricing Model
(01:19:12) Casual Hacking and Insights
(01:26:05) AI Adoption and Ambition
(01:36:00) Outro