The conversation about customer service is gradually shifting from replacing people with AI to a hybrid approach in which AI and people work seamlessly as a team. AI is unbeatable when it comes to speed, availability and volume. Instant answers, day and night, in any language, to the predictable questions that make up most of the queue. People bring something different: empathy, judgement and the ability to calm a frustrated customer and resolve requests that fit no script.
Until now, phone support has been the domain of our customer service agents, but here too we are starting to see a shift, starting with the EV market.
Hybrid AI customer service, in writing and spoken?
Our Hybrid AI solution already handles email and tickets today, in three lanes: AI summarises and prepares the request, after which a human agent drafts the response; AI drafts the response so the agent only needs to review it; and full automation for standard requests where possible.
We have deliberately kept phone support fully human. Until now. We are adding AI voice to our offering, so inbound calls can also be handled by AI, with our agents as backup. AI voice is being rolled out gradually across the industries we serve, starting with EV charging, for a specific reason.
Why EV charging raises the bar for customer service
EV charging differs from most markets on two fronts. The technical side is much more specific. The right answer often depends on live session data, the status of the charge point, roaming between networks, the driver’s charge card and billing logic a generalist support team may never have encountered before.
At the same time, the human side has never mattered more. An EV driver stuck at a charge point at night because it is not working does not want a standard answer. They want a solution. As the hardware becomes more of a commodity, the customer experience is what sets operators apart.
That is exactly the combination where a generic voice bot falls short, and why we are working with a specialist here.
For EV charging we work with Joe by Plugz
Most AI agents in EV charging connect only to the technical layer of the charge point. They can restart a charger, but they cannot identify the caller and cannot answer questions about a contract, a charge card, a tariff or an invoice. Those questions account for a large share of call volume.
Joe is an AI voice and network monitoring agent for EV charging support, built by Plugz in the Netherlands. Joe connects across every layer: charge point, charge card, user and CRM. During the call, Joe takes real action: resetting a charger, unlocking a cable, ending a stuck session, or directing the driver to a nearby charge point that does work, including navigation. Joe also monitors the charging network continuously and often resolves faults before anyone calls.
That is the technical depth you need in this market, and Plugz brings it with five years of experience in charging infrastructure.
How the AI to human handover works in practice
Anything Joe cannot resolve itself is handed over to our agents. Not as a ticket in a queue, but as a live handover with the full context attached: who the driver is, which charge point is involved, what has already been checked and what has been tried. Our people pick up where Joe left off, and the driver does not have to repeat the story.
The operator decides where the balance between AI and people sits, and can shift it over time. It is one proposition, not two separate contracts.
AI in customer service is quickly becoming table stakes. The real advantage goes to organisations that combine it with real people and, where the market demands it, real technical depth. Human plus AI is not a compromise. It is how you give every customer a better experience, with every interaction.
