Early predictions for artificial intelligence (AI) often presented a utopian fantasy with android servants poised and ready to meet our every need — from breakfast in bed to a perpetually clean house. They even offered conversation and companionship. These AI bots of our dreams weren’t merely personal assistants; they were superhuman machines and yet, uncannily human.

This vision hasn’t come to pass. But we’re starting to realize both the power and possibility of AI as a tool to improve our lives.

AI offers a promising remedy for that loss of human touch — if we harness it to support people at home and at work. And, with empathy as a guiding principle, contact centers could emerge as heroes in establishing an AI-powered world that helps us maintain a richer, more connected human experience.