Zendesk will acquire industry-leading provider of service automation, Ultimate, to deliver a more complete AI offering for customer experience (CX).
AI agents push beyond traditional bot capabilities to help brands transform CX into a competitive advantage. With Ultimate, Zendesk will offer AI agents with enhanced intelligence that are not just reactive, but proactive problem solvers, complementing human expertise.
Zendesk CEO, Tom Eggemeier said, “AI is the future of CX and the next generation of AI agents are not just a tool, but a necessary and fundamental shift in how businesses will engage with their customers.
“With Ultimate, we will help our customers set a new standard, with AI agents giving customers the support they need quickly and effortlessly. This means human agents can focus on what they do best – building relationships, resolving complex challenges, and applying innovation and creativity to move businesses forward.”
Ultimate CEO and co-founder, Reetu Kainulainen added, “Our mission has always been to help businesses use AI to deliver joyful support experiences. We’ve seen 99% of CX organisations that adopt AI shift permanently to a hybrid human and AI agent approach. As part of Zendesk, we now have the scale to drive this transformation for every business.”
Ultimate’s AI agents automate up to 80% of support requests. They leverage any knowledge source and offer full customisation to resolve sophisticated use cases. Its automation platform integrates with any backend system and provides robust analytics and reporting. Together, Zendesk and Ultimate will offer flexibility and control to deliver customer support – be it fully autonomous AI agents, workflow automation or human touch.
This acquisition builds on the launch of Zendesk AI, the fastest-adopted product in the company’s history. With Zendesk AI, Ultimate and the company’s AI-powered Workforce Engagement Management solutions, Zendesk offers the only complete CX platform that elevates customer experiences, manages service quality and accelerates business growth.