5 conversational AI trends that will redefine customer engagement in 2026

By Nitin Seth, CEO & Co-Founder, Conversive

Since 2022, adoption of AI-driven chatbots and virtual assistants has surged, driven by changing customer preferences for instant, personalized, and always-on support. By 2025, estimates suggest more than 1.8 billion people globally have interacted with AI chatbots, and chatbots are expected to handle an increasingly large share of support queries across industries.

As organizations prepare for 2026, several strategic trends in conversational AI are emerging that will define the next phase of customer engagement. These trends go beyond simple automation, highlighting how conversational systems must be designed with context, trust, compliance and deep system integration in mind.

Trend #1. AI Agents Become Standard But Trust Decides the Winners

In 2026, AI agents and automation will no longer be optional. They will form a “standard layer” of customer engagement infrastructure, handling routine interactions, personal queries, and even complex tasks. Industry ...