Anticipate. Act. Adapt. The CX Revolution Powered by Agentic AI

26 November, 2025

This article originally appeared in ET Edge Insights.

A New Era of Intelligent Experience

India’s digital ascent is rewriting global playbooks. As enterprises race to transform, the edge no longer belongs to those who automate fastest – but to those who can anticipate, act, and adapt with precision.

At the core of this new advantage is Agentic AI – a generation of systems that think, learn, and execute autonomously. These are not programmed bots following instructions; they are self-learning entities capable of orchestrating decisions across complex business environments.

In a nation as digitally ambitious as India, where 1.4 billion lives intersect daily with data, this shift will define how the next billion customers experience trust, service, and value.

Explore our AI for Financial Services.

From Automation to Autonomy

The early promise of automation was efficiency – faster workflows, reduced errors, predictable outcomes. But automation was static; it optimized known processes.

Agentic AI breaks that ceiling. It perceives, plans, and performs independently. A banking system powered by Agentic AI, for instance, can detect fraud patterns, cross-reference customer behavior, and recalibrate risk – before an issue arises. It acts not after an event, but ahead of it.

According to Gartner, by 2029, nearly 80% of customer interactions will be autonomously resolved, delivering cost reductions of up to 30%. This is foresight made functional – the ability to serve customers not reactively, but proactively.

CX as the New Growth Engine

Customer experience (CX) has evolved from a metric to a mandate. Salesforce reports that 80% of customers now value experience as much as the product, and 73% expect brands to engage them personally across channels.

Agentic AI operationalizes that expectation. It recalls context, understands sentiment, and responds with empathy – at scale. In banking and fintech, it allows relationship managers, product teams, and support staff to act as one synchronized system, continuously learning from each customer touchpoint.

The result? Every interaction becomes intelligent, every response contextual, and every moment an opportunity for deeper connection.

“In the age of Agentic AI, experience is not a service layer – it is the product itself.”

This is the core truth redefining competitive advantage across the financial landscape.

Architecting for Adaptation

Legacy systems were built for stability. Today’s systems must be built for adaptation.

Agentic AI thrives in hybrid architectures, where data from heterogeneous flows seamlessly. This fluidity allows enterprises to innovate without compromising governance.

The momentum is undeniable: the global AI agent market, valued at just over $3 billion in 2023, is projected to exceed $130 billion by 2033. The implication is clear – the move from automation to autonomy will redefine how institutions architect trust, speed, and agility.

AI for Inclusion and Impact

India’s financial inclusion story stands to be rewritten through contextual intelligence.

Traditional credit systems often fail those with limited financial history. Agentic AI can change that by evaluating alternative indicators – such as mobile recharges, digital payment consistency, or micro-transaction patterns – to build adaptive risk profiles.

This opens doors for millions previously excluded from formal finance. It’s intelligence with empathy, innovation with intent – perfectly aligned with India’s Viksit Bharat @2047 vision of inclusive growth.

Balancing Intelligence with Integrity

As AI grows more autonomous, the principles guiding it must grow more human.

Ethical AI is not a policy statement; it’s a design philosophy. Transparency, fairness, and data accountability must be built into every algorithm. More importantly, AI should amplify human judgment, not replace it.

As Agentic AI takes over the operational load, it returns humanity to the center of decision-making – enabling people to resolve conflict with empathy, guide choices with wisdom, and build trust with integrity. The future belongs to companies that master this balance.

Related Read: The AI Multiverse of Banking: From Possibility to Competitive Reality

A Leadership Call to Anticipate and Act

For business leaders, Agentic AI is not a future trend – it’s a present imperative.

It demands leaders who are agile enough to adapt their operating models and bold enough to redefine them. Those who view AI as an augmentation of purpose – not just performance – will outpace their peers.

To anticipate, act, and adapt is not just a framework for AI; it’s a framework for leadership in the digital age.

Related Read: The Future of BFSI: AI-Driven Growth in a $30 Trillion Economy

Designing the Future of Experience

Agentic AI is rapidly becoming the operating system of experience. It will shape how institutions engage, how customers decide, and how trust is built.

Fintech disruptors will leverage it to scale faster; established institutions will wield it to deepen relationships. But across the spectrum, one truth remains: those who hesitate will fall behind.

The leaders who act today – with clarity, ethics, and courage – will not just adapt to disruption. They will define it.