The Human Cost of Digital Darwinism: British Gas's AI Driven Job Cuts British Gas owner Centrica has announced plans to cut 1,300 jobs from its call centres, sparking a debate about the role of artificial intelligence in customer service.
According to chief executive Chris O'Shea, customers prefer interacting with AI chatbots over human representatives. O'Shea's assertion is not unexpected given the industry wide trend towards digitalisation.
However, it raises important questions about the impact of automation on workers and the long term consequences for customer service.