TLDR: A recent Gartner study reveals that a significant majority of Fortune 500 companies do not plan to replace their support staff with AI by 2028. Instead, most intend to maintain current staffing levels and leverage AI to enhance customer engagement. Some companies that prematurely adopted AI for staff reduction are now rehiring, highlighting the complexities and reputational risks associated with rushed AI implementation in customer service.
A new Gartner study indicates that fears surrounding the widespread replacement of human support staff by artificial intelligence in call centers are largely unfounded, particularly among Fortune 500 companies. The research, published on September 12, 2025, found that none of the largest corporations are planning to entirely replace their human workforce with bots by 2028. In fact, analysts observed a trend of companies rehiring staff after overly aggressive AI adoption strategies.
The study’s findings show that only 11 percent of surveyed companies plan to reduce headcount as a direct result of AI implementation. In stark contrast, a substantial 54 percent stated their intention to maintain existing staffing levels, utilizing AI primarily to boost customer engagement and operational efficiency. Emily Potosky, senior director of research at Gartner, emphasized the enduring need for human interaction: “Customers are still going to have issues that need to be handled by human agents. This is both in terms of just practicality, like super unique issues or super critical issues, but also just in terms of the emotional aspect. If you’ve been a victim of credit card fraud and you need to talk to someone, you probably want to talk to a human who can provide you with that reassurance.”
Potosky further explained that successful AI integration is far from a simple plug-and-play solution. It necessitates extensive background work, including the meticulous linking of data management tools and knowledge bases to automated systems. Neglecting these foundational steps can render bot deployments ineffective or even counterproductive, leading to customer frustration and reputational damage. Some companies that hastily laid off staff in favor of AI are now reversing course and rehiring, acknowledging the limitations of current AI capabilities in certain customer-facing roles.
While not all jobs are entirely safe from AI’s influence, and some staff reductions are anticipated, the report highlights an evolving landscape for customer service roles. Approximately 22 percent of companies have ceased backfilling positions when employees leave, yet, conversely, 32 percent are actively hiring more staff for specialized skills. Kathy Ross, senior director analyst at Gartner, noted, “The role of the customer service employee is going to look different. They’re going to be tasked with more complex work, unique issue resolution, and they’re going to be building customer relationships that are going to support growth.”
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The logical progression, according to Gartner, involves humans remaining central to operations, with AI serving as a tool to expand capabilities and handle routine tasks, thereby freeing human agents to address more complex and emotionally nuanced customer needs. This shift will necessitate reskilling for employees, but it is not expected to trigger the widespread ‘jobs apocalypse’ some have predicted. Ross concluded, “Even those companies that have very bullish projections against their headcount reductions are probably going to realize that it may be possible in the future, but not quite yet. So they need to back off these plans.” This sentiment is echoed by the experience of companies like Swedish fintech firm Klarna, which, after an initial aggressive push to replace staff with AI in 2024, admitted by May 2025 that it was rehiring due to customer preference for human interaction.
