An IT head with two decades of experience believes AI will fundamentally change IT support. Traditional ITSM, reliant on manual ticketing and workflows, is being replaced by AI agents that can instantly understand intent, map requests to workflows, and fulfill them, collapsing resolution times.
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Integrate AI agents directly into core workflows like Slack and institutionalize them as the "first line of response." By tagging the agent on every new bug, crash, or request, it provides an initial analysis or pull request that humans can then review, edit, or build upon.
Customers now expect DaaS vendors to provide "agentic AI" that automates and orchestrates the entire workflow—from data integration to delivering actionable intelligence. The vendor's responsibility has shifted from merely delivering raw data to owning the execution of a business outcome, where swift integration is synonymous with retention.
AI can analyze a customer's support history to predict their behavior. For instance, if a customer consistently calls about shipping delays, an AI agent can proactively contact them with an update before they reach out, transforming a reactive, negative interaction into a positive customer experience.
When faced with 1,000 support emails daily and a 12-person team, StackBlitz integrated Parahelp, an AI support tool. The AI agent handled 90% of tickets automatically, allowing the company to manage hyper-growth without hiring a 50-100 person support team, thus avoiding associated complexity and cost.
As businesses deploy multiple AI agents across various platforms, a new operations role will become necessary. This "Agent Manager" will be responsible for ensuring the AI workforce functions correctly—preventing hallucinations, validating data sources, and maintaining agent performance and integration.
Legacy systems like CRMs will lose their central role. A new, dynamic 'agent layer' will sit above them, interpreting user intent and executing tasks across multiple tools. This layer, which collapses the distance between intent and action, will become the primary place where work gets done.
Prioritize using AI to support human agents internally. A co-pilot model equips agents with instant, accurate information, enabling them to resolve complex issues faster and provide a more natural, less-scripted customer experience.
For companies wondering where to start with AI, target the most labor-intensive, process-driven functions. Customer support is an ideal starting point, as AI can handle repetitive tasks, leading to lower costs, faster response times, and an improved customer experience while freeing up human agents for more complex issues.
The paradigm shift with AI agents is from "tools to click buttons in" (like CRMs) to autonomous systems that work for you in the background. This is a new form of productivity, akin to delegating tasks to a team member rather than just using a better tool yourself.
By implementing an AI agent trained on its knowledge base, Castos (a SaaS with 4,000 customers) reduced support tickets by 50%. The system provides instant answers while a crucial "escape hatch" button allows customers to easily reach a human, preventing frustration.
