AI Just Proved It Can Make $10B (not just save pennies)
PLUS: Turn Complaints Into Product Insights
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📅 September 21, 2025 | ⏱️ 3-min read
🎯 The big picture
AI is finally proving it can make companies money, not just save costs. And that changes everything for customer experience.
📊 Today's lineup
• Sierra just hit a $10B valuation by making AI agents that actually sell stuff
• HubSpot and Talkdesk team up to make contact centers way smarter
• Clarity gets $12M because voice AI is about to get really good
• The government wants to know how AI talks to kids (and you should care)
• A telecom company is using AI to actually understand what customers want
1️⃣ Sierra just hit a $10B valuation by making AI agents that actually sell stuff
What's happening:
• Sierra raised $350M and is now worth $10 billion.
• Their AI agents don't just answer questions—they close deals and process warranty claims.
• Big companies with $10B+ in revenue are lining up to use them.
What's so great about this: Finally, an AI company that's proving agents can generate revenue instead of just cutting support costs. This is huge because it means your CEO might actually get excited about AI for customer experience.
What's next: If you're still thinking of AI as just a cost-saving chatbot, you're already behind.
Go deeper: Observer
2️⃣ HubSpot and Talkdesk team up to make contact centers way smarter
What's happening:
• HubSpot and Talkdesk are going all-in on their partnership.
• They're building AI that connects your CRM with your contact center seamlessly.
• No more switching between 5 different screens to help one customer.
What's so interesting: This solves the biggest headache in customer service—having customer data scattered everywhere. When your agents can see everything in one place, customers actually get better help.
What's next: Expect way more of these "let's connect everything" partnerships because fragmented customer data is killing CX.
Go deeper: Yahoo Finance
3️⃣ Clarity gets $12M because voice AI is about to get really good
What's happening:
• Clarity just raised $12M from big investors like Prosus Ventures.
• They're building AI that actually talks to customers (not just types at them).
• Companies like Booking.com and Grubhub are already using it.
What's so great about this: Voice AI that doesn't suck is the holy grail of customer service. Think about it—most customers would rather talk than type, but phone trees are terrible. This could fix that.
What's next: Voice-first AI is coming fast. If your current phone system makes customers want to scream, start planning your replacement.
Go deeper: Retail Tech Innovation Hub
4️⃣ The government wants to know how AI talks to kids (and you should care)
What's happening:
• The FTC is investigating how companies like Google, Meta, and OpenAI protect kids from AI.
• They want to know what safety measures are built into AI systems.
• This isn't just about social media—it's about any AI that talks to customers.
What's so interesting: If you have customers under 18, this affects you. The government is getting serious about AI safety, and that means new rules are coming. Better to get ahead of this than scramble later.
What's next: Start thinking about age verification and content filtering in your AI interactions. This won't be optional much longer.
Go deeper: Mashable
5️⃣ A telecom company is using AI to actually understand what customers want
What's happening:
• TCS and Vodafone Idea are using AI to personalize everything for customers.
• They're not just fixing problems faster—they're predicting what customers need before they ask.
• The TCS HOBS platform makes customer service way more responsive.
What's so great about this: Telecom companies are usually terrible at customer experience. But this shows how AI can turn a commodity service into something personal. If they can do it, anyone can.
What's next: The bar for "personalized experience" just got higher. Generic service is about to feel really outdated.
Go deeper: Complete AI Training
⚡ Quick hits
• OpenAI is building actual AI hardware → your customers might soon talk to AI assistants instead of apps
• Oracle launched AI agents for HR → happier employees usually mean better customer service
• Reid Hoffman spends $650+ monthly on AI tools → shows that power users will pay big for AI that actually works
💡 CX Prompt Tip of the Day
Turn Complaints Into Product Insights
Act as a customer experience analyst reviewing this complaint: [insert customer complaint].
Step 1: Identify the root cause behind the customer's frustration.
Step 2: Generate 3 specific product or service improvements that would prevent this issue.
Step 3: Suggest 2 immediate fixes the customer service team can implement today.
Step 4: Write a 1-sentence insight about what this complaint reveals about customer expectations.
Quick win: Use this on your top 5 complaint types this week to find patterns your product team is missing.
🤔 CX reflection
Question of the day: As AI gets better at selling and serving customers, what human skills become more valuable, not less?
Stay sharp,
Mark
Now Available: The Psychology of CX 101: Master the Hidden Drivers of Customer Behavior
Get 7 Exclusive Launch Bonuses (Order until September 22)