Voice artificial intelligence service failure and customer complaint behavior: The mediation effect of customer emotion

According to the literature, customer service failure and negative customer reactions are closely associated. However, there has been little exploration of the relationship between service failure and negative customer reactions in the context of artificial intelligence (AI) services. Based on a conceptual model, this study explores the impact of voice AI service failure on customer complaint behavior. A proprietary dataset from a telecommunications firm was used to evaluate the utility of the conceptual model. Customer emotion was tested to mediate between voice AI service failure and customer complaint behavior. We found that the failure of voice AI services substantially influences customer complaint behavior. AI service failure increases the likelihood of complaints to a customer in the call center. Furthermore, customer emotion plays an essential mediating role. Our findings have crucial management implications for customer relationship management and recovery service.