AI agents are getting faster, smarter, and more capable… and customers are starting to trust them as much as humans.

Mitel’s latest platform update shows just how quickly the contact center landscape is shifting. The company has announced a significant update to its customer experience (CX) platform with the release of Mitel CX 2.0. The upgraded platform, available in December, introduces new AI capabilities to automate routine tasks and accelerate customer support workflows.

It’s a timely move in an industry where organizations are increasingly evaluating which AI capabilities actually improve customer outcomes.

AI virtual agents and the rise of workflow automation

The update from Mitel introduces AI virtual agents that can handle routine inquiries independently and route more complex issues to the right team. For voice calls, agents receive a transcript and an AI summary when a conversation is handed off from a bot to a human.

Mitel is also launching what it calls “agentic workflows,” which intelligently act on behalf of human agents by automating actions, such as placing orders and issuing tickets.

The AI virtual agents in Mitel CX 2.0 are developed in Workflow Studio, Mitel’s low-code/no-code integration platform that allows non-developers to create and customize communication workflows. Workflow Studio integrates with application programming interfaces, large language models, customer relationship management, and other systems.

This allows organizations to build workflows that streamline business processes, said George Despinic, senior product marketing manager for Mitel’s contact center portfolio, during an analyst pre-briefing.

“By combining Workflow Studio with the workflow engine of Mitel CX, we are creating an enterprise-like customer engagement strategy,” said Despinic. “Looking at some of the use cases — auto attendant, call routing, appointment scheduling — these are all really powerful tools any enterprise could use across all the industries.”

During the briefing, Mitel outlined additional deployment options planned for future phases. The next iteration, released in 2026, will allow customers to keep their Mitel private branch exchange (PBX) on-prem while running the contact center in the cloud. Down the line, Mitel will also support third-party PBXs, such as Microsoft Teams.

Why cloud choice still matters in modern contact centers

Mitel’s private cloud delivery is unique in the industry, as every other contact center provider comes to market with a SaaS based offering.

While there is undoubtedly tremendous momentum around public cloud-based CCaaS, it’s not right for every organization. Much of the world wants greater control over its data or must adhere to regional sovereignty regulations. In fact, with the rise of agentic AI, many organizations have been moving workloads back from public clouds to private clouds.

AI is very data-intensive, and the ingress/egress costs of public cloud services can be cost-prohibitive. On the call, Despinic stressed Mitel’s commitment to supporting communications in hybrid environments, as that approach gives customers more flexibility and control.

“If you compare Mitel to traditional competitors like Avaya, NEC, and Alcatel-Lucent, they all have a hybrid story, and they’re integrated with their UC,” said Despinic. “However, they’re really narrowing their focus. They’re drawing down on their on-prem and private cloud offerings, and they’re ramping up their public cloud offerings.

He added: “So we look at Mitel as being in this unique position of taking hybrid UC and contact center to heart, and that’s really a focus across the company.”

Finding the right balance between automation and human support

AI is rapidly becoming central to how organizations modernize customer experience, and the contact center remains one of its most accessible entry points.

In a survey of 500 companies I conducted earlier this year, 95% now compete primarily on customer experience — a sharp rise from 28% in 2020 — and consumers are quick to switch brands after just one or two poor interactions. The stakes for getting CX right have never been higher.

In this environment, AI is emerging as a practical catalyst for change. For simple inquiries, consumers will likely prefer AI agents in the near future, as they can deliver faster, more consistent responses. But human agents will continue to play a critical role in handling complex or sensitive issues where judgment and empathy matter.

For most organizations, the challenge isn’t choosing between AI and people. It’s finding the right balance. Mitel’s workflow-centric approach in CX 2.0 aims to help customers blend automation with human expertise to improve outcomes without compromising service quality.

As AI expands across CX platforms, data security remains a critical concern. A recent Salesforce–Gainsight breach underscores why.