Feature
The Gist
- Personalization is priority. 31% of CX leaders are strongly positive about AI’s potential to personalize experiences, making it the top goal.
- Cost is the main hurdle. 42% cite tool expenses as their biggest AI challenge, with prediction accuracy and data integration also weighing heavily.
- CSAT defines success. Customer satisfaction scores are the leading KPI for judging AI-driven CX, ahead of efficiency or retention.
- Marketing feels the impact. 64% believe AI is transforming campaigns most, showing its strongest influence on CX strategy.
AI-driven insights are reshaping customer experience (CX). What once felt experimental is now becoming a central part of how brands listen, respond and deliver value. With AI in CX, businesses can now move from reactive service to proactive engagement, creating experiences that feel more personal and intuitive.
But what are the big challenges here? How are CX leaders balancing automation, integration and governance with the need to preserve human empathy, ethical standards and organizational alignment?
Let's dig into some numbers and trends from recent research on CX leaders in the United States (methodology at the end of the article).
Table of Contents
- Inside the AI-Driven Customer Experience Numbers
- What Is Your Main Goal When Using AI for Customer Experience?
- What Is Your Biggest Challenge When Implementing AI in CX?
- What Type of Data Is Most Valuable for AI-Driven Insights in CX?
- How Do You Measure the Success of AI-Driven CX Initiatives?
- What Drives Your Decision to Adopt New AI Tools for CX?
- Which Area of CX Do You Believe AI Impacts the Most?
- Which Customer Touchpoint Do You Prioritize for AI?
- Which Department Benefits Most From AI?
- What Benefit Do You Value Most From Using AI in CX?
- How Do You Ensure AI Aligns With Customer Needs?
- Which AI CX Capability Excites You Most?
- What Do You Consider the Biggest Risk With AI in CX?
- What Would Make You Invest More in AI CX Solutions?
- What Is Your Preferred Method to Learn About AI Updates?
- An AI-Driven CX Future
- AI Transforms CX: From Reactive to Predictive
- Current Drivers of AI-Powered CX
- The Evolution Toward Anticipatory Experiences
- What Resonates With CX Leaders
- Methodology
Inside the AI-Driven Customer Experience Numbers
Expand the section below for a concise summary of research findings.
What Is Your Main Goal When Using AI for Customer Experience?
31% of CX leaders said they were strongly positive that using AI in CX would help them to improve the customer experience
AI in CX is about chasing different wins at the same time, rather than seeking a single silver bullet:
CMSWire’s 2025 State of Digital Customer Experience survey shows organizations reporting a step-change in AI use: those with “extensive” use nearly tripled year-over-year (11% → 32%), while “no AI” fell from 17% to 2%. Larger firms lead (51% extensive vs. 32% mid-market, 26% small).
Personalization was the clear frontrunner in how CX leaders want to use AI for customer experience. Thirty-one percent were strongly positive about its potential, 17% moderately positive and just 1% neutral or uncertain. It’s no surprise, since a Twilio study shows that 89% of leaders see personalization as crucial to driving business success over the next three years.
Satisfaction is also on the radar, with 16% strongly positive and 4% moderately positive about using AI to boost it, showing how much weight companies place on overall customer happiness. Reducing customer effort earned 6% strongly positive, 11% moderately positive and 1% neutral or uncertain, underlining the role AI can play in removing friction from everyday interactions.
Predicting customer needs came next at 9% strongly positive, 2% moderately positive and 1% neutral or uncertain.
Related Article: AI Is Rewriting the Rules of CX Metrics — Are You Ready?
What Is Your Biggest Challenge When Implementing AI in CX?
The cost of tools is the biggest challenge in implementing AI for 42% of CX leaders
Rolling out AI comes with a few real hurdles along the way:
The cost of tools stood out as the biggest challenge in implementing AI. Thirteen percent of CX leaders called it a major hurdle, 28% saw it as a significant concern and 1% viewed it as a minor issue. That tracks with what the Wall Street Journal describes as an unsettled pricing landscape, where vendors keep testing models and CIOs push back on fees that feel too high.
The accuracy of predictions followed. Six percent called it a major hurdle, 14% a significant concern and 4% a minor issue, showing that trust in AI’s output is still building. Data integration came next, with 4% who described it as a major hurdle, 9% as a significant concern and 6% as a minor issue, pointing to the ongoing challenge of linking new tools with existing systems.
Staff adoption added another layer, with 4% who saw it as a major hurdle, 8% as a significant concern and 2% as a minor issue, highlighting the human side of AI transformation. Regulatory compliance drew fewer mentions, with 1% who considered it a major hurdle and 1% a significant concern, but even small numbers remind us that rules and oversight are always in the background.
Cost still remains a hurdle in innovation in this space. CMSWire’s 2025 State of Digital Customer Experience survey flags “limited budgets/resources” as the top CX challenge, yet 82% still plan CMS/DXP investments (build, buy or upgrade), and 52% already have a CDP.
CMSWire’s 2025 State of the CMO survey shows ROI measurement (35%), lack of budget (32%) and cross-team misalignment (30%) as the biggest roadblocks to advancing CX.
What Type of Data Is Most Valuable for AI-Driven Insights in CX?
73% of CX leaders said that social media sentiment is the most valuable data for AI-driven insights
There’s no shortage of data to fuel AI, but CX leaders made it clear which source delivers:
The types of data leaders see as most valuable for AI insights show social media sentiment well out in front. Thirty-four percent called it highly valuable, 39% saw it as moderately valuable and 14% said it was not valuable. Recent research has shown that AI can cut through the noise of social feeds, picking up on slang, emojis, and even sarcasm, and turn it into clear signals companies can act on.
Purchase history came in far lower, with 6% who rated it highly valuable and 2% moderately valuable, while support integration logs were rated highly valuable by 5%. The contrast shows how CX leaders place more weight on capturing customer emotions in the moment than relying solely on transactional or operational data.
One thing we do know: the CX leaders we talk to directly aren't putting all their chips into social media sentiment. Leaders are doubling down on customer support and service interactions, such as insights from contact center calls. That seems to be where the magic happens: in those frontline agent-driven interactions, where customers spill the beans. The challenge? Collecting those insights and making them actionable for CX leaders.
How Do You Measure the Success of AI-Driven CX Initiatives?
24% of CX leaders agreed that the customer satisfaction score was a key factor when measuring the success of AI-driven CX initiatives
There are several benchmarks CX leaders can lean on when deciding if AI is paying off:
For most CX leaders, success with AI-driven initiatives starts with customer satisfaction scores. Twenty-four percent called them a key success factor and 27% saw them as a positive indicator, which lines up with recent reporting that AI agents are now hitting the same customer satisfaction levels as their human counterparts.
Operational efficiency came next, with 22% who said it was a key success factor, 12% who viewed it as a positive indicator and 4% who called it a minor factor. In other words, leaders are looking for AI to do double duty, delighting customers while also cutting waste and speeding up workflows.
Everything else carried a smaller share, with retention seen as a positive indicator for 4% and minor for 1%, engagement levels positive for 4% and conversion rate positive for 2%.
The CX leaders we talk to at CMSWire say traditional metrics in the customer experience world are often sidelined by new ways to analyze customer experience outcomes.
Related Article: 10 Guaranteed Ways to Improve Customer Satisfaction
What Drives Your Decision to Adopt New AI Tools for CX?
85% of CX leaders remain neutral about whether positive reviews drives their decision to adopt new AI tools
While CX leaders are taking a wait-and-see approach, there was a single frontrunner in the mix:
The factors shaping decisions to adopt new AI tools came through with a largely neutral tone. Positive reviews were mentioned most often, with 85% holding a neutral view. That makes sense, since reviews are now part of everyday life. Ninety-eight percent of consumers read them at least occasionally and 77% do so frequently or always.
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Ease of integration followed with 11% neutral, vendor support with 2%, scalability with 1% and proven ROI with 1%. Taken together, it paints a picture of CX leaders scanning the usual signposts, from reviews to integration, but keeping their cards close before letting any single factor drive adoption.
Which Area of CX Do You Believe AI Impacts the Most?
64% of CX leaders said that AI-driven marketing campaigns have a significant impact on CX
In the contest for AI’s biggest role, one area grabbed the spotlight:
Marketing campaigns stood out in CX as the area where AI was driving the biggest transformation. Sixty-four percent of CX leaders in said the impact was significant, showing how deeply AI is reshaping the way campaigns are planned, personalized and delivered. That momentum lines up with wider findings, as Influencer Marketing Hub’s AI Marketing Report Survey reported that 34.1% of marketers saw significant improvements in their outcomes thanks to AI.
Customer support came next, with 18% who reported a significant impact and 1% who saw it as limited, a sign that AI is starting to carve out its place in service by tackling routine questions and giving human agents more time for the tricky ones. Product recommendations followed at 10% with a significant impact, while sales engagement came in at 6%. Feedback analysis rounded out the list, with 1% who said the impact was significant.
Related Article: AI's Transformative Role in Customer Support and Service
Key Findings From CMSWire 2025 Reports
Highlights from four flagship CMSWire research reports on CX, AI, data platforms and marketing leadership.
| Theme | Key Finding | Source |
|---|---|---|
| AI Adoption | Organizations reporting “extensive” AI use nearly tripled year-over-year (11% → 32%), while those with no AI dropped from 17% to 2%. Larger firms lead adoption. | State of Digital Customer Experience 2025 |
| Challenges | ROI measurement (35%), lack of budget (32%), and cross-team misalignment (30%) are the top roadblocks to advancing CX initiatives. | State of the CMO 2025 |
| Data Platforms | CDPs unify customer profiles across websites, email, loyalty and social, extending benefits “across any section of the enterprise that impacts the customer experience.” | CDP Market Guide 2025 |
| Digital Experience | DXPs are embedding governance and compliance features alongside AI-powered authoring and A/B testing, helping organizations scale responsibly while cutting costs. | DXP Market Guide 2025 |
Which Customer Touchpoint Do You Prioritize for AI?
40% of CX leaders agreed that mobile apps are a priority AI customer touchpoint
CX leaders are plotting out where AI can change the customer game:
Of the customer touchpoints prioritized most for AI by CX leaders, mobile apps came out firmly in front. Twenty-three percent called it a top priority, 17% saw it as an important focus, 7% viewed it as less critical and 3% said it was not a priority. It’s not hard to see why when you look at what AI is adding to apps. Real-time personalization, predictive suggestions and visual recognition are making them more dynamic and interactive than ever.
Email campaigns followed, with 20% who called them a top priority, 10% who saw them as an important focus and 1% who said they were less critical. It’s a reminder that even with newer channels emerging, email is still a workhorse and AI is helping it stay sharp with smarter targeting and better timing.
Websites came next, with 7% who rated them a top priority, 6% as an important focus and 2% who said they were not a priority. Social channels barely registered, with 1% who saw them as a top priority and 1% as an important focus. In-store experience rounded out the list, with 2% who called it a top priority.
Customer Data Platforms have emerged as one way to stay on top of customer touchpoints. CMSWire’s 2025 CDP Market Guide highlights how CDPs unify profiles and activate them across websites, email, loyalty and social—showing the broader cross-touchpoint value beyond mobile.
Which Department Benefits Most From AI?
37% of CX leaders said that marketing departments are benefiting the most from AI
Every department has its eye on AI, but some are benefitting more than others now:
Marketing is the department getting the biggest lift from AI. Twenty-seven percent of CX leaders said the impact was highly beneficial and another 10% described it as useful. Only 2% saw it either as having a limited impact or not being beneficial. A recent study backs this up, showing that AI is transforming marketing end-to-end, from sharper customer insights to personalized campaigns and even automated strategy execution.
Product development wasn’t far behind. Twenty-two percent described AI as highly beneficial and 12% as useful, with a limited impact or no benefit for 1%, showing how it’s speeding up everything from concept to launch. Customer service also earned recognition, with 9% who saw it as highly beneficial and 2% as useful, while a further 1% saw limited or no benefit. That’s another nod to AI’s role in handling routine queries and giving staff more time for complex cases.
Related Article: What 2025 Data Tells Us About the Future of Chatbots in CX
What Benefit Do You Value Most From Using AI in CX?
28% of CX leaders said that the biggest benefit of using AI in CX was the reduced costs
The payoffs from using AI ripple across every part of the business:
CMSWire’s 2025 DXP Market Guide points to vendors using AI assistants and automated authoring to cut development effort and reduce costs—echoing why cost savings resonate with CX leaders.
The benefits CX leaders value most from AI show just how much has changed. The 2024 Zendesk Customer Experience Trends Report found that 65% now see AI as a strategic necessity, with traditional CX methods already feeling outdated. In that light, it’s no surprise that cutting costs tops our list. Twenty-eight percent called it highly valuable, another 28% said it’s moderately beneficial and only 1% saw it as not beneficial.
Better forecasting also earned a strong nod. Seventeen percent rated it as highly valuable and 7% as moderately beneficial, showing the appetite for smarter predictions. Gains in loyalty followed, with 8% seen as highly valuable and 5% as moderately beneficial, while 6% pointed to sharper agent performance as highly valuable.
Interestingly, faster decision-making didn’t register any opinions, which is a surprising omission considering how closely it ties to AI’s role as a strategic necessity in CX.
How Do You Ensure AI Aligns With Customer Needs?
26% of CX leaders agreed that A/B testing is strong supportive for ensuring AI aligns with customer needs
With CX, AI only works when it works for customers and leaders are putting clear guardrails in place to make sure it does just that:
CMSWire’s 2025 DXP Market Guide shows leading platforms embed A/B and multivariate testing as core features to continuously optimize experiences.
For CX leaders, ensuring AI stays aligned with customer needs comes down to testing, checking and adjusting. A/B testing took the lead, with 26% strongly supportive and 1% supportive, though 6% said they were unsupportive. What makes this especially interesting is that A/B testing itself has evolved. As Stanford Business points out, what was once a static, one-off tool has been reinvented for the digital age into something more dynamic and adaptive, giving CX leaders a sharper way to see what truly resonates.
Reviewing analytics followed, with 22% who said it was strongly supportive, showing the importance of data-driven checks. Regular feedback surveys earned 9% strongly supportive and 11% supportive, while cross-functional reviews scored 4% strongly supportive and 12% supportive. Continuous training rounded things out, with 1% strongly supportive and 8% supportive.
Which AI CX Capability Excites You Most?
Journey mapping is an exciting CX capability for 54% of CX leaders
One AI capability is the clear crowd-pleaser:
CMSWire’s 2025 DXP Market Guide details how platforms integrate journey mapping and optimization tools—supporting why CX leaders are most excited about this capability.
AI’s capabilities spark enthusiasm in different ways, but journey mapping captured the spotlight for CX leaders. Fifty-four percent said it excited them, and another 19% found it interesting. The appeal lies in how AI turns journey mapping from a flat snapshot into a living guide, showing not only the routes customers take but also why they make certain choices, and adapting in real time.
Predictive analytics followed, with 6% excited and 9% interested, a sign of growing faith in AI’s ability to sharpen forecasting. Automated responses closed the list, with just 2% excited and 9% interested. Because they’re already widely adopted, CX leaders are now reserving their excitement for capabilities that push AI into new territory.
Related Article: What Is Predictive Analytics? And How It Works
What Do You Consider the Biggest Risk With AI in CX?
Lack of transparency is considered the biggest risk with AI in CX for 48% of CX leaders
As CX leaders put AI to work, they’re also clear-eyed about where the pitfalls might be:
For CX leaders, the biggest red flag around AI was transparency. Forty-eight percent said that lack of transparency was concerning, while just 4% said it was not. That ties neatly to wider industry worries too, with 75% of businesses fearing that a lack of AI transparency could drive customers away in the future. It is a clear reminder that trust and retention go hand in hand in the age of AI.
CMSWire’s 2025 CDP Market Guide emphasizes that CDPs should integrate with consent management tools so customer preferences travel with the profile—directly addressing transparency concerns.
Bias in data was the next issue, with 32% concerned about how skewed inputs can lead to skewed results. Customer mistrust followed, with 6% saying it was a concern and 4% saying it was not. Security breaches came in as a concern at 5%, while high maintenance costs barely registered, with only 1% saying they were not concerning. This is interesting when you consider how much reputational and financial damage can be done by bias, mistrust and data breaches.
Related Article: Building Customer Trust — Statistics in the US for 2025
What Would Make You Invest More in AI CX Solutions?
Proven compliance would make CX leaders moderately positive about investing more in AI CX solutions
For most CX leaders, opening their wallets hinges on confidence that AI will stand up under scrutiny:
CMSWire’s 2025 DXP Market Guide highlights how governance and compliance tooling are being built into DXPs, making it easier for organizations to scale AI responsibly.
For many CX leaders, the deciding factor in boosting AI investment is proving that innovation can cut through the red tape. Proven compliance led the way, and 15% called it strongly positive and another 25% moderately positive, while 8% were neutral or negative. Strong AI governance gives companies the green light to scale, rather than being slowed down by regulatory roadblocks.
Clear success stories followed close behind, with 13% strongly positive and 10% moderately positive, while just 1% were neutral or negative. The interest in clear success stories shows that leaders want proof in action, not just promises on paper. Lower entry costs also carried weight, with 2% strongly positive, 9% moderately positive and 1% neutral or negative, while better integration options earned 3% strongly positive and 9% moderately positive.
Interestingly, with 1% strongly positive and 2% moderately positive, demonstrated ROI barely featured, which is striking given how often ROI is seen as the ultimate measure of value.
The good news? Money's coming. CMSWire’s 2025 State of the CMO survey shows 77% of leaders report budgets increased this year, with 91% of those with advanced tech stacks expecting increases next year.
What Is Your Preferred Method to Learn About AI Updates?
51% of CX leaders said webinars were an essential resource for keeping them up to date about AI updates
Keeping up with AI means finding the learning formats that really deliver:
When it comes to learning about AI updates, CX leaders clearly leaned toward formats that keep them close to the latest changes, and webinars led the pack. Fifty-one percent called them an essential resource,15% saw them as a useful tool and 6% used them as an occasional reference. The appeal of webinars is easy to understand. They’re short, focused sessions that fit into packed schedules while still offering live interaction.
Vendor workshops played a smaller role, with 3% saying they were useful, while 13% treated them as an occasional reference and 1% did not prefer them. Peer networking had its supporters. Two percent called it essential and 8% found it useful. Interestingly, industry blogs and online courses received no opinions at all, showing that leaders favored live, interactive learning over more static formats.
An AI-Driven CX Future
The insights from over 1.2 million CX leaders make one thing clear. AI is now the driving force in customer experience. It is powering smarter journeys, reshaping trust and setting the terms for future growth. The momentum is no longer about experimenting with AI; it is about building CX strategies that put it front and center.
Beyond these statistics, here's what we've learned over the past year from the CX leaders driving our dialogue:
AI Transforms CX: From Reactive to Predictive
AI-driven customer experience has moved beyond basic automation to become a strategic differentiator for enterprises. Some primary forces are reshaping how organizations engage with customers, while CX leaders navigate the balance between technological capability and human connection.
Current Drivers of AI-Powered CX
Hyper-personalization leads the charge, enabling brands to deliver tailored interactions at scale. Predictive analytics allows organizations to anticipate customer needs before they arise, while omnichannel engagement ensures consistent experiences across touchpoints.
Conversational interfaces are empowering self-service capabilities, reducing friction in customer interactions. However, CX leaders report that data quality, ethical AI implementation and cross-functional alignment remain critical success factors.
The Evolution Toward Anticipatory Experiences
The trajectory points toward automation and proactive engagement. Generative AI now powers dynamic, human-like conversations that adapt to context and sentiment.
Hyper-automation is streamlining entire customer journeys, while emotion AI helps brands understand and respond to customer sentiment in real-time. The next wave includes unified platforms, zero-click experiences and AI copilots that support both customers and frontline staff.
What Resonates With CX Leaders
Personalization at scale tops the priority list for CX executives, followed by frictionless experiences and loyalty-building initiatives. Leaders emphasize that AI should augment rather than replace human interaction.
ROI measurement, privacy protection and responsible AI adoption drive decision-making. Successful organizations break down silos, invest in team upskilling and build flexible architectures to adapt to rapid innovation.
The most effective implementations blend smart technology with human insight, ensuring that even advanced AI systems maintain the empathy that drives customer satisfaction.
Methodology
To find out what 1.27 million CX leaders in the US's opinions were about AI-driven insights in CX, we utilized AI-driven audience profiling to synthesize insights from online discussions for a year, ending Aug. 4, 2025, to a high statistical confidence level. Their perspectives reveal where AI is sparking excitement, where challenges remain and how organizations are preparing for the next wave of transformation.
Sourced using Artios from the independent sample of United States CX Leaders' opinions across X, Reddit, TikTok, LinkedIn, Threads and BlueSky. Responses are collected within a 95% confidence interval and 3% margin of error. Results are derived from opinions expressed online, not actual questions answered by people in the sample.
About the representative sample:
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55% identify as male and 45% as female.
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53% earn between $200,000 and $500,000 annually.
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38% reside in the Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic regions.
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50% are aged 55 and over.
