40% of support solved without a human: the benchmark has moved

On its third-quarter results call in early November, Airbnb said its AI assistant resolved approximately 40% of all customer support issues without a human agent, up from about a third in the previous quarter. Support cost per booking fell by more than 17% compared with a year earlier. The company added that satisfaction with its customer service was as high as it has ever been.

Plenty of companies claim savings from AI. This case is useful because the numbers are public, the service is complex, and satisfaction rose while costs fell. It shows that automation and good service are not opposites.

• Start with the common questions. A small set of issues usually makes up most of the volume.
• Connect the assistant to real data. It must see the booking, order or account to resolve anything.
• Let it act. Rescheduling, status updates and simple changes, within limits you set.
• Hand over well. When a person is needed, pass on the full conversation.
• Measure resolution, not replies. Count issues closed, not messages sent.

Airbnb's customers use its app. Customers in the Gulf use WhatsApp. The same result is available to a clinic, a retailer or an insurer here, on the channel their customers already open every day. That is the job BizBot was built for.

Forty per cent is not a ceiling. It is where one large company stands today, and a fair target for a business starting now.