Zoom Introduces AI-Powered Virtual Agent to Streamline Customer Service Calls
Zoom has expanded its AI capabilities by integrating its Virtual Agent with Zoom Phone, creating a seamless way for businesses to connect callers directly with the right department. This new feature acts as a 24/7 AI receptionist that not only routes calls but also interacts with customers to understand their issues and gather relevant information before handing over to a live agent.
Traditionally, customer calls often pass through a contact center where agents handle transfers and act as intermediaries. With Zoom’s Virtual Agent (ZVA), this process is more efficient—the AI receptionist processes caller inputs, gauges intent, and directs the call to the most appropriate team. It also collects helpful details from callers, giving employees a head start when they take over, which speeds up troubleshooting.
Beyond routing, Zoom Phone users can automate routine tasks like booking appointments and providing updates. These capabilities are no longer limited to large, centralized contact centers but are accessible to smaller or distributed teams in sectors such as healthcare and education. For example, healthcare providers can route calls with context to local clinics and allow AI-assisted appointment scheduling over the phone. Universities with scattered helpdesks can streamline support by routing queries between departments while maintaining context.
Even large contact centers benefit from the ZVA acting as a concierge that pre-qualifies calls, so agents receive all relevant information upfront without searching for background details. This approach helps agents focus on resolving issues faster and improving customer satisfaction.
Zoom is among the first tech vendors to integrate OpenAI's GPT-5 into its AI stack, enhancing the Virtual Agent’s conversational abilities. The ZVA currently supports English, French, German, Portuguese, Japanese, and Spanish, with plans to add more languages soon. The deployment is designed to be quick and user-friendly, with a no-code setup that allows businesses to get started within minutes.
Practical AI for Businesses of All Sizes
This Virtual Agent solution fits well with businesses lacking large contact centers but needing intelligent call handling. The unified platform combines CCaaS (Contact Center as a Service), UCaaS (Unified Communications as a Service), and conversational AI into one system. This integration simplifies customer support workflows and reduces manual effort across departments.
Similar AI receptionists have already seen rapid adoption, like RingCentral’s AI Receptionist, which onboarded over 1,000 businesses within three months of launch. This trend shows strong demand for AI tools that improve practical customer service operations rather than just adding basic AI features like meeting transcription or message rewriting.
Additional Zoom Enterprise Communication Updates
Zoom has rolled out several new features across its platform to help teams work smarter and save time.
- AI Companion Auto-Scheduling: The AI Companion assistant now helps schedule meetings by finding the best time for all participants, factoring in calendars, time zones, and out-of-office statuses. It sends invites and manages responses, suggesting alternatives if someone declines, cutting down on scheduling back-and-forth.
- Zoom Hub: A new asset hub within Zoom Workspace stores meeting summaries, documents, clips, and whiteboards. The AI Companion helps users quickly retrieve insights through natural language queries, reducing the need to switch between different tools.
- Enhanced Zoom Team Chat: AI Companion is integrated into Zoom Workplace’s Team Chat, helping users draft messages and catch up on conversations. Desktop users can also summarize files stored in Zoom with a simple click.
Last month, Zoom also introduced an auto dialer and expanded solutions for sales and revenue teams, further supporting customer experience personnel.
For those looking to deepen their understanding of AI tools in customer support, exploring targeted AI courses for customer service professionals can provide practical skills to leverage these innovations effectively.
Your membership also unlocks:
