Avaya expands integration with Google Cloud AI

Avaya is further integrating with Google Cloud Contact Centre artificial intelligence (AI) to allow users to access the artificial intelligence capabilities of both companies.

This includes embedding Google's machine learning within Avaya conversation services for the contact centre, enabling integration of AI capabilities regardless of channel.

Avaya and Google are innovating in a number of key areas, including:

• Virtual agents – Human-like automated bots which interact with customers, offloading the live agents' utilisation until the optimal time and then transferring all context gathered to the agent.
  Now customers can decide when and how to engage bots throughout the interaction and the Avaya platform captures the intent, actions and ultimate disposition of each interaction in real-time. Through this data, Avaya AI can be applied to decide the next best action in future customer engagement.
   
• Agent assist – Continuously delivers contextually relevant knowledge base to agents based on real-time conversational analysis for both voice and text-based interactions.
  Avaya AI algorithms can be applied to Google Contact Centre AI to determine the next best action by the agent, delivering the right information and reducing customer friction – while increasing agent satisfaction and contact centre efficiency.
   
• Conversational topic modelling – An unsupervised learning tool designed to uncover key topic areas that customers have been contacting the contact centre about, and abstracting relevant information relating to how topics are articulated.
  Google Topic Modelling combined with Avaya AI enables agents to leverage real-time visibility of topics with each conversation turn. Through this insight, recommended responses and best actions can be tailored to each part of the conversation to drive desired outcomes.

Avaya is enhancing the customer experience by strengthening these areas through the integration of Google Cloud APIs with key elements of Avaya's contact centre infrastructure.

Additionally, Avaya's browser-based desktop is designed to easily connect with applications and Google Contact Centre AI is seamlessly incorporated in the agent user experience.

"Partnering with Avaya helps us deliver on our goal to make the contact centre experience easier and more efficient," says Google Cloud product management director Rajen Sheth.

"We're excited to work with Avaya so enterprises can keep customers happy with faster call resolution, and we look forward to building on this partnership as technology and customer's expectations evolve.

Avaya and Google's collaboration offers a differentiated contact centre solution with a native gRPC integration for voice.

This will enable Avaya IX Contact Centre customers to integrate AI providers like Google Cloud and infuse AI capabilities regardless of channel, for consistent omnichannel experiences.

Avaya IX Contact Centre solutions are capable of maintaining an awareness of all events, including the sentiment, suggestions and resolution, creating a data lake source for future machine learning processing that generates increasingly impactful results.

"We continue to expand our AI-enabled solutions as well as our cloud offerings for customers ranging from small-medium business to the largest global enterprises, and further collaboration with Google is providing additional capabilities to augment the innovation," says Avaya solutions and technology senior vice Chris McGugan.

"By bringing these innovations to market for Avaya customers and partners, we enable them to make every customer interaction more meaningful and insightful, and more productive for their businesses.

Avaya pioneered the integration of AI capabilities into contact centre communications solutions, and has led development and investment in a number of key areas:

• Self-service - With the power of AI, you can deliver great self-service experiences getting your customer the right information at the right time.
   
• Agent assistance and productivity - Empower agents with AI-driven guidance, that includes relevant content, suggested next-actions, and real-time coaching to stay ahead of customer engagement.
   
• Smart matching - Leverage advanced machine learning models to pair the best agent with each customer interaction.
   
• Smart interactions - With powerful AI technologies, you can create smart, conversational interactions that yield improved business results.
   
• Empowered agents - Agents are empowered by AI-driven guidance for content and suggested actions. Summarisation tools help agents expedite after-call processes.
   
• Simplified operations - Reduce complexity for customers and agents alike by using AI models to select a self-service experience, automate a process, or pair with the best possible agent