Seventh annual awards honor global innovators turning customer experience technology into real-world impact

PALO ALTO, California, Oct. 26, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Talkdesk®, Inc., a leader in Customer Experience Automation (CXA), today announced the winners of its seventh annual Talkdesk CX Innovators Awards. Evaluated by a panel of seven independent industry analysts and experts, alongside a vote from the Talkdesk customer community, this year’s winners are putting technology to work in ways that change the economics of customer experience (CX) and raise the bar for what businesses can deliver.

The 2026 program recognizes companies and leaders across seven categories for advancing CX through automated workflows, orchestration, and exceptional human leadership. Their achievements demonstrate how AI can work seamlessly alongside human experts to scale capacity, elevate customers’ interactions with brands, and drive immediate impact.

“Seven years ago, customer service success was judged by how fast someone answered the phone or handled an interaction,” said Tiago Paiva, chief executive officer and founder of Talkdesk. “Today, that mindset is obsolete. This year’s winners aren’t just answering calls faster; they’re changing CX with AI, automation, and human ingenuity. They’re eliminating multimillion-dollar outsourcing contracts, solving customer requests for a fraction of traditional costs, and tripling top-line revenue.”

A prime example of this operational shift is Memorial Healthcare System, a winner of the 2026 Innovator of the Year category. Across its hospitals and specialty centers, Memorial automated routine patient verification and appointment scheduling which keeps their frontline staff focused on more specialized needs. “By connecting our patient communications on a single platform, we slashed after-call work from over 15 minutes down to 90 seconds while dropping average hold times from over 20 minutes to under 5 minutes,” said Rayna Ziadie, senior director, digital consumer experience at Memorial Healthcare System. “Pairing human expertise with intelligent AI orchestration lets our teams focus on high-touch patient care where empathy matters most.”

“What stood out during the judging process was how these organizations approached AI with a focus on practical outcomes,” said Sheila McGee-Smith, president and principal analyst at McGee-Smith Analytics, LLC, and 2026 judging panelist. “The caliber of this year’s submissions shows that the orchestration of AI agents alongside human teams has become a powerful reality across a wide range of use cases.”

Innovator of the Year

AI Agent of the Year

Rookie of the Year

Hybrid Workforce Leader

Modernization Maverick

AI Visionary

Momentum Leader

Talkdesk will feature several winners and their stories in a showcase webinar on December 9, 2026.

About Talkdesk
Talkdesk® automates the world’s most complex customer journeys. By resolving customer requests from start to finish, AI agents enable a hybrid workforce where human expertise is reserved for the moments that matter most. Backed by deep industry expertise and trusted by global leaders like Canon, United Rentals, Sysco, and Kimberly-Clark, Talkdesk sets the standard for Customer Experience Automation (CXA).

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