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AI Customer Service Frustration: Insights from Glance's 2026 CX Trends Report

The rapid shift towards AI in customer service has left many consumers feeling disillusioned and frustrated, as highlighted in Glance's recently published 2026 CX Trends Report. The report draws from insights gleaned from over 600 U.S. consumers and illuminates a marked discrepancy between the promises of AI and the actual customer experience.

The findings reveal that a significant 75% of respondents encountered situations where they received quick responses from AI systems yet were left unsatisfied. This raises critical questions about the effectiveness of current AI strategies in meeting consumer needs. In a landscape increasingly dominated by technology, 68% of customers indicated that securing a complete resolution is far more important than the speed of response in customer support interactions. This underscores a crucial aspect often overlooked by organizations focused heavily on automation.

The report also highlights reduced customer loyalty as a pressing concern, with nearly 90% of respondents admitting that their loyalty diminished when human support was unavailable. Furthermore, a staggering 7% of customers reported rarely or never having to repeat themselves when switching channels, suggesting a profound issue with continuity in AI-driven support systems. In fact, 34% of those surveyed felt that AI support made their experience more complicated, with a majority expressing a preference for human-centric support channels.

Interestingly, while 44% of consumers always try self-service options first and 50% using it sometimes, this willingness is predicated on the design and implementation of AI solutions. Many consumers express a desire for self-service that is user-friendly and efficient, meaning that well-structured AI systems can effectively bridge the gap when crafted thoughtfully.

Tom Martin, CEO of Glance, remarked, “The industry spent much of 2025 chasing speed and automation… but our research shows that customers felt increasingly disappointed by digital systems that were supposed to help them.” This encapsulates the essence of the report, which doesn't shy away from discussing where organizations went wrong, such as deploying bots intended to deflect rather than resolve inquiries. Issues like broken workflows, inconsistent data, and fragmented omnichannel experiences are all highlighted as critical areas needing urgent attention.

Senior Director of Product Marketing at Glance, Heather Nightingale, emphasizes the importance of learning from the past: “This report doesn’t sugarcoat the lessons from 2025. We’re honest about what failed because leaders can’t build credible AI strategies without addressing the foundation first.” As companies prepare for 2026, the trends outlined in the report suggest a pivotal shift toward prioritizing resolution and enhancing the human aspect of digital interactions.

Leading customer experience (CX) teams in 2026 are expected to evolve by creating AI systems that rely on accurate, consistent data. Furthermore, there will be a focus on intent-aware automation that knows when to escalate issues to human representatives. Omnichannel experiences must ensure true context continuity, while personalization should feel intentional rather than intrusive. Empathy will become a significant factor in fostering customer loyalty, nudging companies to rethink metrics of success—from vanity metrics to meaningful values like retention and reduced customer effort.

As the insights from Glance’s 2026 CX Trends Report are absorbed, organizations are urged to reflect on their foundation before more extensive automation takes hold. The lessons learned from the past year highlight the urgent need for a strategy that recognizes and addresses consumer frustrations instead of ignoring them in the pursuit of technology. The future of customer service may not solely be about AI replacing humans, but rather about AI empowering them, bolstering the overall customer experience journey.

In conclusion, CX leaders who heed the insights from this report will be well-positioned to uplift their strategies, ensuring that customer expectations are not only met but exceeded. To understand the full scope of these trends and access detailed insights, the complete report is now available for download.