How is AI changing the way customers contact telecoms providers?
Checking a bill, comparing broadband packages or asking for help with a phone service can now involve an AI assistant. On 25 September 2026, Ofcom published a discussion paper examining how these interactions are developing and what they mean for customers. The review covers the opportunities, the risks and the regulatory questions ahead. For businesses considering AI call handling, it offers a useful picture of a market in transition: new ways to manage enquiries are emerging alongside familiar expectations about reliable information and accessible support.
Read Ofcom’s AI discussion paper and supporting research
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What does the research tell us about AI use?
Ofcom’s Technology Tracker found that 53% of adult UK internet users had used a generative AI tool or an AI customer-service chatbot in the previous year. Eight per cent had used AI in connection with their telecoms services: 6% to resolve an issue, 3% to compare prices, products or services, and 2% to make a complaint. These activities can overlap. The figures show that familiarity with AI is more widespread than its use for managing a phone or broadband account.
Read Ofcom’s summary of the findings
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Why do some customers welcome AI while others prefer a person?
The accompanying qualitative research explored experiences through 35 interviews and 13 focus groups, including consumers, people with additional needs and decision-makers in small and medium-sized businesses. Participants brought different levels of experience with AI, from regular use to little or none. That approach helps explain the reasons behind people’s reactions, rather than measuring how many people nationwide share each view. In the published findings, some participants welcomed the convenience of automated assistance, while others worried about understanding, empathy and reaching a person when a conversation became difficult.
Explore the consumer and business research
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Where are telecoms companies using AI?
AI has long supported the operation of telecoms networks. The more recent change is its growing role in conversations and decisions involving customers. Ofcom describes a cautious approach to deployment, shaped by the accuracy of AI responses, customer trust, identity checks, access to customer information and commercial returns. Providers are limiting what systems can do while those issues are addressed. This helps explain why an assistant may handle a routine question but pass an account change or a more complicated request to another process.
Read the full discussion paper
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Could AI help customers choose and manage services?
The report also looks beyond answering questions. Personal AI agents could help customers compare packages, prepare a switch for approval or monitor an account for a more suitable deal. Ofcom identifies practical challenges, including authentication and authorisation across different systems. For a customer, asking an assistant to explain a tariff is quite different from allowing it to enter a contract. The distinction brings questions about how much authority an agent has and how the customer remains in control of the outcome. These are developing possibilities rather than a description of services available from every provider.
What does Ofcom say about transparency and human support?
Ofcom expects telecoms customers to understand when they are interacting with generative AI. It also expresses concern about AI becoming a barrier to support channels that providers are required to offer. The announcement does not prescribe a standard telephone greeting. Its emphasis is on customers understanding the interaction and retaining access to support. For a phone service, that involves both the conversation itself and what happens when the caller needs help beyond the assistant’s capabilities.
See Ofcom’s explanation of its expectations
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How can a business explain its use of AI?
Information beside an online contact option, an introduction within a chat window and an opening telephone message are possible ways to explain AI use. Their effectiveness depends on how someone reaches the service: a caller using a saved number may not have seen the website. Separately, the CMA’s guidance says businesses should disclose AI where that knowledge could affect consumers’ decisions and avoid misleading them about the service. The appropriate presentation therefore depends on the customer journey, rather than a single phrase or placement applying to every interaction.
Read the CMA’s guidance for businesses using AI agents
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What does this mean for AI receptionists and business calls?
An AI receptionist is one part of a wider telephone setup. A business might use it to capture an enquiry while staff are busy, explain opening hours or identify the right department. An IVR can offer a short menu, while call routing determines where the call goes next. For example, an appointment enquiry received after closing time could become a callback request for the following working day. Confirming an appointment during the call would require the relevant booking integration. The experience depends on how those parts work together.
Explore IVR and business call handling
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What happens when a caller needs another route?
A transfer to a staffed team, a queue and a callback request offer different next steps. Their availability depends on opening hours, staffing and the phone system’s configuration. A caller who has already explained an issue may also expect that information to reach the person answering next. These everyday details connect the capabilities of a conversational assistant with the operation of the business behind it. They are relevant whether automation handles every incoming call or only overflow enquiries.
See how intelligent call routing works
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Will Ofcom introduce new AI rules?
Ofcom’s current assessment is that the existing framework allows responsible innovation while protecting telecoms customers. It is continuing to monitor developments and engage with industry and consumer groups. Its published update highlights future questions around transparency, accountability and meaningful consent as AI takes on more complex tasks. The September paper therefore records the regulator’s present assessment and the issues it is watching as the technology develops.
Follow Ofcom’s work on AI in telecoms
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Discuss your business call-handling options
If you are exploring AI telephone services, tell Digital Select what customers typically call about, when your team is available and where enquiries need to go. We can discuss your requirements alongside telephone numbers, IVR and routing options, including the integrations a proposed setup would need.
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