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What happens when AI meets the chaos of real-world customer support?
In this episode of Eye on AI, we sit down with Ryan Wang, co-founder and CEO of Assembled, to unpack how AI is transforming the future of customer service, without replacing humans.
Ryan reveals how Assembled went from a workforce scheduling tool to a full-stack AI support platform used by companies like Stripe, Robinhood, and Honeylove.
You’ll learn how conversational AI agents are handling up to 75% of support inquiries, why voice is the next big frontier, and how AI copilots are helping human agents become 15% more productive.
But this isn’t just hype. Ryan shares the hard economic truths behind automation—why humans aren’t going away, how companies are navigating global workforce optimization, and why hybrid AI + human systems are here to stay.
This episode gives you a front-row seat into how the smartest companies are rethinking support at scale.
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(00:00) Preview and Intro
(01:37) Ryan Wang’s Journey from Stripe to Assembled
(04:55) Launching Assembled
(09:49) From Scheduling Tool to AI-Powered Support
(12:11) Who Uses Assembled: Companies vs. BPOs
(14:57) Building Conversational and Voice AI Agents
(21:10) Competing with Zendesk, Salesforce & Crescendo
(23:07) How Assembled Integrates with Customer Support Stacks
(25:40) The Niche Power of Workforce Management Tech
(31:16) Why the Customer Support Market Is Ripe for Disruption
(33:47) How Assembled Swaps Between OpenAI, Claude & Others
(37:56) Evaluating LLMs with Golden Datasets and 'Vibe Checks'
(41:20) Multilingual Support and the Challenge of Europe
(45:11) Industry Focus vs. Complexity Focus
(47:43) Voice AI: The Next Big Frontier?
(50:18) The Truth About AI Replacing Jobs in Support
(54:39) The Automation Paradox: Why Labor Isn’t Shrinking
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