AI customer service, explained.
AI customer service uses language models to read customer messages and write accurate replies, on chat and email. The best systems ground their answers in your knowledge base, cite sources, and hand off to humans when they're unsure. Here's how it works, what it costs, and how to get started.
AI customer service reads messages, looks up answers in your knowledge base, writes human-quality replies, and escalates when unsure. It handles 50-80% of routine questions, costs a fraction of human agents, and works 24/7 in 100+ languages.
- ✓Learns from your website, help docs, and uploaded documents. Answers only from your sources.
- ✓Works on chat and email simultaneously, from the same knowledge base.
- ✓Escalates to human agents with a full conversation summary when it's unsure.
- ✓Handles 100+ languages natively, no translation layer needed.
How AI customer service actually works
When a customer sends a message, the AI reads it, understands the intent, searches your knowledge base for relevant information, and writes a reply. It cites the sources it used and assigns a confidence score. If confidence is high, the reply goes out automatically. If it's low, the conversation routes to a human agent with a full summary. The human never starts from zero.
What it costs
AI customer service typically costs €0.05 to €0.50 per AI reply, compared to €5-€10 for a human-handled interaction. Keloa starts with a free Starter plan (50 AI replies/month) and paid plans that charge per reply. No per-seat fees, no hidden costs. For a business handling 1,000 conversations/month with 70% AI resolution, the AI portion might cost €50-€100/month versus €3,500+ with human agents alone.
Setting up your knowledge base
The quality of AI replies depends entirely on your knowledge base. Point the AI at your website, help center, product documentation, and FAQ pages. Upload any internal documents that contain answers customers frequently need. The AI indexes everything and starts answering. Review the first 50-100 conversations and add missing knowledge where the AI had to escalate.
The human handoff
Good AI customer service knows its limits. When the AI encounters a question it can't answer confidently, it hands off to a human agent. The human gets the full conversation history plus an AI-generated summary of the issue. This means faster resolution because the human already knows what the customer needs. Set your confidence threshold based on your tolerance for AI mistakes.
Getting started in 10 minutes
1) Sign up for Keloa (free, no card). 2) Point it at your website or upload your help docs. 3) Install the chat widget on your site. 4) Connect your support email. 5) Watch the first conversations and fine-tune. Most teams are live in under 10 minutes and reach steady state within a week.
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How long does it take to set up AI customer service?
With Keloa, you can be live in 10-15 minutes. Point it at your website, install the widget, done. The AI starts answering immediately. Fine-tuning takes a few days as you review conversations and add missing knowledge.
What if the AI gives a wrong answer?
The AI cites its sources in every reply. If it gives a wrong answer, it's usually because the knowledge base is missing information. Add the correct answer to your knowledge base and the AI learns immediately. You can also set a higher confidence threshold so the AI only answers when it's very sure.
Can AI replace my entire support team?
No, and it shouldn't. AI handles routine questions (password resets, order status, product info) while your team focuses on complex issues, relationship building, and edge cases. Think of it as handling the first 50-80% so your team can spend more time on the remaining 20-50% that actually needs a human.
How much does AI customer service cost?
Keloa starts free (50 AI replies/month). Paid plans charge per AI reply with no per-seat fees. The average cost per AI-handled interaction is a fraction of what a human agent costs. For most small businesses, the total spend is €49-€199/month depending on volume.
Does it work in Dutch and other languages?
Yes. Keloa's AI handles 100+ languages natively, including Dutch, German, French, Spanish, and English. No translation add-on needed. The AI detects the customer's language and replies in the same language automatically.
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