Gen X and millennials show greater willingness to embrace agentic AI: Salesforce report

New Delhi: Generation X and millennials are more receptive when it comes to adopting agentic artificial intelligence (AI), a report has said.

Agentic AI refers to autonomous agents that can independently make decisions and perform tasks, adapting and learning from their experiences without direct human oversight.

It can be deployed in retail and e-commerce for personalised recommendations and inventory management, and in logistics for supply chain management. Agentic AI also has several use cases in healthcare, finance, telecom, IT, customer service, among others.

Salesforce's State of the AI Connected Customer research said millennials and Gen Xers in India are more willing than Gen Z and Baby Boomers to work with agents for faster, more proactive service.

"The research shows Gen X (58%) and millennials (57%) are more willing than Gen Z (51%) and Baby Boomers (42%) to use AI agents to improve their customer experience by creating more personalised, or useful content," it said.

Baby Boomers are people born between 1946 and 1964, Generation X from 1965 to 1980, Millennials from 1981 to 1996, and Generation Z from 1997 to 2012.

The report further said consumer trust has reached its lowest level in eight years, making it more essential than ever to build that trust, especially with the advancements in AI.

More than half of the respondents surveyed trust companies less than they did a year ago, and feel companies are reckless with customer data.

"As we enter a new era of intelligent customer engagement, brands that prioritise trust in their AI strategies will be best positioned to deliver impactful, lasting connections," Arun Parameswaran, SVP & Managing Director, Sales and Distribution, Salesforce India, said.

Transparency is key to building consumer confidence in the AI agent era, the report said.

The research is based on a survey of 15,015 consumers across India, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Norway, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, the UK, and the US.