Telcos are increasingly interested in the potential of generative AI tools, prompted by the immense popularity gained by ChatGPT, according to a recent study.
GlobalData, a prominent data and analytics company, reports that the widespread adoption of ChatGPT, following its launch in November 2022, has resulted in a significant increase in interest in generative AI tools.
The research firm revealed that telcos are no exception to this trend and are quickly warming up to the benefits that these tools offer.
According to Pradeepthi Kantipudi, a Telecom Analyst at GlobalData, numerous generative AI tools are emerging in the market that can produce conversational text and personalised content such as music, images, or codes based on a given prompt with ChatGPT especially drawing attention for its instant and near accurate output.
“For telcos, ChatGPT could bring disruption in several business functions, including customer service, network management, fraud detection, sales, and marketing,” he said.
To enhance customer experience and reduce costs, Samrat Volam, Technology Lead Analyst at GlobalData, suggests integrating ChatGPT with traditional customer service channels. This integration would enable telecoms to offer instant and automated support 24/7, provide information on their product and service portfolio, and quickly address a broad range of customer inquiries and issues. This would result in reduced wait times and ultimately lead to increased customer satisfaction.
“To better serve a geographically diverse customer base, telecom companies can also employ ChatGPT to provide translation for customers who speak different languages. In this way, AI-powered tools can help telcos in enhancing customer experience and cutting costs,” he added.
ChatGPT can help telecom companies increase their sales and revenue by providing customers with personalised product recommendations and exclusive offers based on their previous purchases and interests. Moreover, ChatGPT can be used to detect and monitor fraudsters, and even build a database of information that can be used to prevent future fraudulent attempts.
“With several telcos testing and exploring new use cases for ChatGPT, investment in the telecommunications sector is set to increase in the short to medium term,” said Kantipudi.
“This is put into perspective by GlobalData’s market opportunity forecasts for AI, which estimate enterprise AI spending in the communications sector at US$1.6 billion in 2022 and project it to increase up to $2.9 billion by 2026.”
Telcos are showing interest in developing their own versions of ChatGPT. For instance, KT, a South Korean telecom company, is working on its version of the OpenAI model. Similarly, SK Telecom is planning to launch its AI chatbot and has already released a beta version called “A” (pronounced “A dot”) in South Korea in May 2022. Additionally, China Telecom has announced its intentions to build an AI foundation model to develop an industrial ChatGPT version for the telecommunications industry.
Volam concluded, “The benefits of ChatGPT as a useful tool for customer care and technical support in the telecommunications industry are evident. As the technology matures and companies explore novel applications, the telecom companies stand to benefit by offering an enhanced customer experience and thereby reducing churn and improving their sales and profits.”
