AI is a puppet.
But who pulls the strings?

Act One. Enter the puppet, fresh from the factory

Red curtain, spotlights, applause. Center stage: him, the perfect puppet. He doesn't complain, doesn't punch a clock, doesn't send passive-aggressive emails like "as per my previous email." He jumps, fidgets, flails his arms, and interacts with the audience as if he were born for it. And, above all, he throws no diva tantrums when the director changes a line.

But watch out: he moves around so much that, at times, even he doesn't know why he's doing it.

Because a puppet, let's face it, is a block of wood with a hinged jaw. He is brilliant at looking confident even while spouting nonsense with an impeccable tone. But if nobody pulls the right strings, the script goes right out the window.

The audience laughs, but the question remains: who is really running the show?

Act Two. The puppet attempts a solo career

One day, our friend decides that strings are old school: he can do it all on his own; he's watched plenty of tutorials. He barely manages to strike a pose as the leading star before... total collapse. He deflates on the floor like a botched soufflé, the curtain drops on its own, and the audience starts checking where to get a ticket refund.

Because a puppet without direction is like an AI without context: it can string together a lot of words, but it has no idea where it's going. It responds in a millisecond, sure—but if the answer is wrong, you've just delivered a disaster with immaculate timing. In fact, it turns into a real-time catastrophe. And real time, as we all know, is the absolute worst place to improvise… the audience doesn't applaud louder just because you made a mistake faster.

The stage only holds together if someone, behind the scenes, keeps a tight grip on the strings. Firmly. With good judgment. Someone who knows when to let the puppet speak and when, instead, to call in a real human being capable of listening beyond the words.

Act Three. Finally, someone holding the strings (and the Customer Care show is a triumph)

A well-manipulated puppet isn't just functional: it's magical. Punchlines at the exact right moment, pinpoint choreography, an audience glued to their seats applauding without a thought of requesting a refund. When the strings snap, however... well, that's when you suspect someone backstage lost focus, broke a superstition, or, worse yet, walked onto the stage dressed in purple.

With the right strings, the puppet looks like a natural wonder. But the real wonder isn't the puppet: it's the direction. It's the hands holding those strings—knowing when to pull, when to give slack, when to let the puppet talk, and when to silence it and call someone else onto the stage. True talent isn't talking all the time: it's knowing when to pass the mic.

Because the puppet, no matter how talented, cannot do everything on its own. It needs someone to guide it, someone who knows the script, understands that every performance is different, and recognizes that every audience has distinct needs.

In our Customer Care, that is exactly how it works. The AI we employ is our puppet: fast, tireless, terrific at fielding simple queries and gathering details. But we hold the strings. The direction is ours. We decide when to let AI operate autonomously—strictly when it has verified data and a well-defined script, leaving zero room for improvisation or hallucinations—and when, on the other hand, it's time to bring our live agents into the spotlight: real people who know how to listen, interpret, and resolve problems. All without forcing the customer to re-tell the entire plot from square one.

The puppet assists us, accelerates tasks, and simplifies workflows. But the theater is ours. The crucial decisions are ours. The capacity to genuinely care for the person calling us is ours. It is human.

And the result is a performance where the puppet plays its part, we play ours, and the audience goes home delighted. No hiccups, no missteps. Just pure, outstanding service. And above all: without leaving anyone literally hanging by a thread.

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Article by Simona Di Iorio Sales Assistant for Voice & Web.

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Voice & Web's scope of activity spans from Customer Care Services, to Customer Satisfaction, Customer Relationship Management (CRM), customer facilitation and guidance in eCommerce activities and processes, to improve the user experience.