AI Agents Transforming Customer Experience and Business Operations in Sweden
Imagine a customer entering a store. As they approach the checkout, an AI agent identifies their past purchases, analyzes loyalty data, and suggests a personalized offer. If the customer needs to make a return, the issue is resolved in seconds, and simultaneously, the customer receives a recommendation for a more suitable product. All of this happens automatically, in real-time, without human intervention.
This isn’t a futuristic fantasy. It’s becoming a reality for companies that give AI agents – AI tools capable of reasoning, making decisions, and acting autonomously – a real chance in a live environment, according to Emma Lythell.
Lythell, Sales Director at Salesforce Sweden, with a background in retail, states:
“If I were working in retail today, I would let AI agents handle virtually the entire customer journey: from identifying customers at risk of leaving, to automatically sending out relevant offers, and managing all customer service. The potential is enormous, especially for building loyalty and increasing average purchase value.”
Digital Colleagues in Swedish Companies
Many companies are starting their AI journey within customer service, where there are significant opportunities to streamline operations and improve customer experience.
“AI agents can answer questions, handle returns, and suggest upsells – 24/7. We’ve seen examples where AI agents have taken over 70-80% of all customer service cases, resulting in faster service and reduced costs,” Lythell explains.
Sven Nordquist, Head of Sweden at Salesforce, confirms this trend, noting that Salesforce practices what it preaches. Many AI agents are already operational within the company.
“Like many others, we started with customer service. Today, Agentforce handles over 30,000 cases per week and has significantly improved customer satisfaction. Our 25,000 salespeople each have their own AI-based sales coach, and even HR support is powered by Agentforce,” Nordquist says, adding:
“We use agents extensively. By autumn, Salesforce will have around 100 in operation. We see how they relieve our teams, improve response times, and allow us to focus more on complex customer needs.”
Are Swedish companies, historically quick to adopt new technologies, positioned to lead in AI innovation?
“My answer is a resounding yes. There’s significantly more AI innovation happening in Swedish SMEs than is often reflected in reports. We Swedes may not always boast about what we’re doing, but we’re doing a lot, and we’re quick to act. Globally, Salesforce sees Northern Europe as a testing ground for what’s coming. There’s a reason for that. What gains traction here often spreads to the rest of the world,” Nordquist asserts.
During the Salesforce Agentforce World Tour in Stockholm, several Nordic companies, including Finnair, reMarkable, and the Swedish Childhood Cancer Foundation, showcased successful use cases where AI agents interact with end customers. Many more companies are using AI agents but are not yet ready to publicize it.
“These concrete examples are driving Swedish companies to move from experimentation to large-scale AI investments. Their success inspires others,” he says.
AI Agents on Everyone’s Lips
Ed Thompson, a key figure in Salesforce’s global strategy team, has also noticed the rapid pace of development. Arriving in Stockholm for the Agentforce World Tour, he encountered a new attitude among the business leaders he met.
“Two years ago, the conversations were about risks. Now, they’re about how to avoid being overtaken,” he says.
He cites companies that, in just a few months, have gone from pilot projects to having AI agents handle over 80% of all customer service cases, reducing costs by up to 30%.
“I see a clear divide in Sweden and other countries: either companies are investing heavily and quickly, or they’re making very small investments. But most now realize that the risk of waiting is greater than the risk of acting,” Thompson states.
This development is driven by the breakthrough of generative AI. Salesforce has adapted quickly, Thompson explains, by rebuilding the Customer 360 platform twice in recent years: first, to securely handle AI and large datasets, and then to fully support autonomous AI agents with a dedicated “trust layer” for data security and control. The platform now enables thousands of Swedish companies to automate the entire customer journey.
From Hesitation to Snowball Effect
Like Thompson, Lythell observes a clear shift among Swedish companies. The previous hesitation, particularly in regulated industries, has been quickly replaced by a willingness to act.
“More and more are deploying AI to interact with end customers. They’ve understood that enterprise AI is very different from the consumer-facing solutions they use privately. I’d say we’re seeing a snowball effect, and now the energy is focused on finding areas where they can quickly achieve results,” she says.
Nordquist notes that the rise of AI agents is reshaping the entire working life, including his own.
“We’ll have to get used to working side-by-side with entirely digital colleagues. It’s an exciting thought that I might be the last generation of leaders who are only responsible for physical employees,” he says.
At the same time, he emphasizes that AI agents – through their tireless nature – can empower their human colleagues. According to Harvard Business Review, over four-tenths of an office worker’s day is spent on “low value tasks.”
“Imagine if we got that time back, what value could we create? In customer service, for example, AI agents can help all employees reach the same level as the highest performers. That’s what we mean by ‘Human in the loop’ – to amplify what we humans do and achieve,” he continues:
“Contrary to many others, I believe that AI will lead to an increase in the number of jobs, but they will look different.”
How are companies affected?
“What was previously seen as science fiction is now business-critical technology. Really, only imagination sets the limits. The companies that dare to think differently and best combine AI agents with human competence will outpace their competitors,” Nordquist concludes.
Enjoyed this post by Thibault Helle? Subscribe for more insights and updates straight from the source.
