The role of an AI ambassador: Does your company need one?

Unless you have been sheltering under a particularly large, hidden rock for the last two years, you’ll be aware that artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming pretty much every business function imaginable since the internet first emerged.

Whether it’s internal tasks like analyzing data and automation to create better customer journeys, or front-end processes like chatbots and search functionality, its impact on the world of customer experience is transforming business operations as well as people’s roles. In fact, according to this year’s Global State of CX research compiled by CX Network, eight out of the top 10 trends identified by CX professionals as having the greatest impact on their day-to-day roles are either enabled or directly related to AI.

But of course, fully leveraging the benefits of this technology and navigating its challenges requires new skillsets and a degree of strategic planning. Here we explore how an AI ambassador could fulfill these needs—and whether your company needs one.

What is an AI ambassador?

An AI ambassador is someone who promotes the use of AI within their company, ensuring it is used effectively to enhance CX while addressing any concerns or challenges that arise. It involves understanding both the technical aspects of AI and the human elements of customer experience, and as well as driving adoption internally, ambassadors represent the company and raise awareness of AI among more widely, for example through public speaking and other external events. Note that the role of an AI ambassador not to be confused with that of an AI-generated brand ambassador or virtual influencer.  

Also, unlike a chief artificial intelligence officer (CAIO), the duties of an AI ambassador might be additional to those of their day-to-day role. In many companies, their responsibilities might already be covered by other positions such as customer experience managers, data scientists or IT professionals. If they are already effectively managing AI interactions and addressing customer concerns, adding another role might be redundant.

What does an AI ambassador do?

Key responsibilities of an AI ambassador could include:

Education: This could involve helping customers understand how AI is used in their interactions with the company, as well as leading training for staff to ensure they learn how the technology works. AI ambassadors act as intermediaries between technical and non-technical teams, translating tech jargon and ensuring that projects run smoothly and efficiently.

Driving innovation: By ensuring the capabilities of AI are widely understood, AI ambassadors can pave the way for innovative ideas to emerge and to be implemented across the company, facilitating brainstorming and solution-finding.  

Representing the company: Through public speaking, networking and engaging with people outside of the organization, AI ambassadors can position their company as a leader in the AI space, helping to build its reputation.

Creating internal policies: It’s important to establish clear lines of accountability for AI systems to make sure there are mechanisms in place to address potentially harmful consequences of AI-driven decisions. This could involve gathering regular feedback from customers and stakeholders and establishing a culture of continuous improvement.

Promoting ethical use: AI ambassadors ensure that AI projects stick to ethical guidelines. This includes monitoring the ethical implications of AI such as data privacy and algorithmic fairness to ensure that the company's AI practices align with customer values. They can also advocate for the responsible use of AI to prevent issues that could damage the company's reputation or lead to regulatory challenges.

Companies with AI ambassadors

Hotel booking site trivago has been using AI and machine learning for a number of years to support its search functionality. More recently, the company decided to create its AI Ambassadors group to help integrate AI into daily work.

The ambassadors are responsible for helping teams find AI use cases, promote AI in different areas of the company, and act as internal experts for questions related to the technology. This work led to the launch of its internal trivago Copilot, which helps with tasks like data analysis.

The initiative also spurred events like an AI coding challenge, encouraging participants to develop innovative AI solutions; meetups with external speakers and participating at international conferences, all of which help to develop staff skills and boost awareness of the brand.

UK banking group HSBC launched its Ambassador Network in 2023, giving thousands of employees the chance to take part in training in areas like responsible AI, machine learning and applying AI practices within the bank.

Upon completing the training, staff can share their knowledge both internally and externally, as representatives of the bank.

The case for an AI ambassador

So, does your company need an AI ambassador? This will depend on the complexity of your AI systems, the nature of your customer interactions, and your commitment to customer-centricity.

It also depends on the scale of your company. Smaller companies may not require a full-time ambassador. In these cases, the role could be combined with other responsibilities or filled on a part-time or consulting basis.

Larger companies with extensive AI-driven customer interactions may find that a dedicated AI ambassador is needed to maintain a high level of customer satisfaction.

Ultimately the decision to appoint an AI ambassador depends on your company’s AI strategy, customer experience goals, and the complexity of your AI systems. If your company is deeply invested in AI-driven customer interactions, and you prioritize transparency, personalization, and ethical considerations, an AI ambassador could be a valuable addition to your team.

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