Customer Experience

Mountain View – – October 15, 2026 -- Level AI has appointed Shane Abeyratne, Senior Vice President of Global Business & Finance Services at Cardinal Health, as the second member of its CX Advisory Board, which launched in August.

Board convenes Fortune 500 leaders to set AI frameworks for contact centers

The CX Advisory Board brings together senior technology and customer experience executives from Fortune 500 companies. Its remit is to develop shared frameworks for how AI is deployed, measured and governed in enterprise customer operations.

Level AI said the Board will add members over the coming months. It is prioritizing executives responsible for large-scale customer contact operations.

Vancouver – October 14, 2026 -- TELUS Digital has signed on as an implementation partner for Parloa, the Germany-founded agentic customer experience (CX) platform, giving its 83,000+ team members across 35+ countries a new AI agent offering for enterprise clients.

Under the arrangement, TELUS Digital will introduce prospective and current clients to Parloa's AI agent platform and help put it into production at scale. Enterprises can contract directly with Parloa for the platform, and separately engage TELUS Digital for implementation, integration, change management, managed services and other professional services.

Durham, N.C. – October 12, 2026 -- IONNA, the charging network founded by eight automakers including Toyota, has surpassed 180 live charging sites across the United States, more than doubling its footprint since the start of 2026.

IONNA tops J.D. Power ranking among DC fast chargers in first eligible year

The network took the top ranking among DC fast chargers in the J.D. Power 2026 U.S. Electric Vehicle Experience (EVX) Public Charging Study in its first year of eligibility. IONNA says its growth is built on coverage, reliability and amenities.

Circle K partnership delivers 40 live charging locations since April

Since announcing its strategic partnership with Circle K earlier this year, IONNA has brought 40 Circle K charging locations online. The sites extend the network into one of America's largest convenience retail networks.

Chattanooga – October 08, 2026 -- HelloNation has published a feature examining how lodge-style sports bar design shapes guest behavior during live game-day events, drawing on commentary from Stephanie Gray, a marketing leader with the Twin Peaks franchise group that operates the Chattanooga, Tennessee location.

Layout and sightlines drive guest retention during peak viewing hours

Gray states that venues built with clear sightlines and comfortable seating create a more balanced environment for fans than traditional crowded bar layouts. This design approach allows guests to stay engaged with live sporting events while participating in a broader social experience, according to the feature.

New York – – October 08, 2026 -- A global survey of 3,250 travelers finds 89% want either a hybrid stay blending artificial intelligence and human service or AI confined to background tasks, with almost none favoring an AI-led experience, according to data released by hospitality platform Mews.

Guests reject full automation even for routine tasks

Human staff were preferred over AI at all nine touchpoints tested in the study, including arranging taxis -- the most automatable task surveyed -- where 44% of respondents chose a human versus 28% who chose AI.

The preference for human service intensifies as tasks require judgment or trust: 72% of guests want a human for bar and restaurant service, 66% for front desk welcome, and 58% for check-in and key handover. Room service orders showed the closest split, with 50% preferring a human and 23% opting for AI.

Arlington, Va. – October 08, 2026 -- Info-Tech Research Group has named Gong and Agentforce Sales as joint leaders in its 2026 Conversation Intelligence Data Quadrant Report, each scoring 9.0 on the firm's Composite Score (CS) scale, with Avoma close behind at 8.6 CS.

The rankings, drawn entirely from verified end-user feedback on Info-Tech's SoftwareReviews platform, designate all three vendors as Champions in a category covering tools that capture, transcribe, and analyze customer calls and meetings.

Gong and Agentforce Sales tie at the top with 9.0 Composite Scores

Gong earned its score on the strength of call recording features, according to user feedback aggregated in the report. Agentforce Sales matched that score, with reviewers citing its conversation coaching capabilities as a standout strength.

Austin, Texas – October 07, 2026 -- Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) unveiled a set of agentic collaboration tools at WebexOne 2026, aiming to merge AI agents, workplace infrastructure and customer engagement into a single enterprise architecture.

Cisco embeds Claude and OpenAI's dots directly inside Webex workflows

Through Claude Managed Agents, Webex users will soon be able to convert shared team context into multi-step analysis, strategic recommendations and coordinated actions across approved agents without leaving the platform. New collaborative AI agents can be @mentioned inside Webex spaces, meetings and calls to execute cross-application tasks—such as pulling usage statistics and updating a presentation deck in real time. Separately, Cisco's Webex Suite Model Context Protocol integration feeds enterprise context into OpenAI's dots, with plans to make dots an always-on personal agent inside Webex.

Cleveland – October 07, 2026 -- Tim Hortons posted the fastest drive-thru service among major quick-service chains with an average total time of 4 minutes and 20 seconds, according to the 26th annual QSR Drive-Thru Report released by QSR magazine in partnership with Intouch Insight.

AI ordering cuts hospitality cues, study finds

The report, based on thousands of data points and mystery-shopper evaluations, found that when artificial intelligence handled drive-thru ordering, employee behaviors such as saying "thank you" and displaying a pleasant demeanor declined significantly. The findings point to a widening gap between operational automation and guest experience as more chains deploy AI at the order window.

Starbucks tops order accuracy rankings

Starbucks led competitors on order accuracy, a metric the report identifies as critical to customer satisfaction alongside speed and convenience.

October 06, 2026 – London -- Vista Global Holding Limited's VistaJet has received a Luxury Experience Commendation from The Luxury Report, part of a cluster of international accolades landing across the company's VistaJet and XO brands this year.

VistaJet accepts Luxury Experience Commendation for service excellence

The Luxury Report, working with the Lexden Group, presents the Commendation annually to a small number of businesses for consistently exceptional customer experience; past recipients include Sanlorenzo MED Monaco Lounge. Christopher Brooks, Managing Director of the Lexden Group, and Janos Nieddu, CEO of CDN Media, publisher of The Luxury Report, presented the award. Ian Moore, Chief Commercial Officer of VistaJet, accepted on the company's behalf.

Hollywood, Fla. – October 05, 2026 -- Red Roof outlined a multi-brand growth strategy at its Ignite conference this week, centered on a redesigned Red Roof PLUS+ experience, a next-generation RediRewards loyalty program and an AI-native digital platform, President Zack Gharib told more than 1,000 attendees.

Red Roof PLUS+ gains hot breakfast, interior corridors and upgraded guest rooms

Planned enhancements for the midscale PLUS+ tier include hot breakfast in upgraded breakfast areas, enhanced bathroom lighting and terry, interior-corridor design, lobby marketplaces, and optional fitness facilities and pools depending on location. The changes aim to give the segment a more consistent, recognizable identity and strengthen property performance for owners.