👋 Follow me for posts about the most important news on the use of AI in customer support.

🤝 Exchange ideas with other customer support leaders at CCAIA meetings: ccaia.org

John Walter

As Head of GTM Retail and Personal Services at SoundHound AI, I lead the go-to-market strategy for the Smart Answering platform, an AI-powered voice assistant designed to enhance customer interactions across retail, fitness, wellness, and franchise brands. Utilizing my expertise in leadership, start-ups, and go-to-market strategy, I have collaborated with teams to scale adoption across hundreds of franchise units, drive new monetization models, and establish partnerships within the retail tech and telco ecosystems.  

With extensive experience in leadership and go-to-market strategy, I am passionate about leveraging AI to amplify customer engagement while supporting operational growth. My approach emphasizes creating innovative solutions that reduce complexity and deliver measurable impact. At SoundHound AI, I aim to empower businesses to enhance customer responsiveness and unlock new revenue opportunities through cutting-edge conversational AI technologies.

Davide Petramala

Franchises don’t struggle with demand—they struggle with execution at scale.
In 2026, Agentic AI is becoming the operating layer that delivers brand consistency and local agility.

New article 👇
 The Franchise Advantage in 2026

Head of GTM Retail and Personal Services @ SoundHound AI | Leadership, Start-ups

Multi-unit franchises have always faced a trade-off: enforce brand standards or empower local operators. Agentic AI eliminates that trade-off. In 2026

Open article: The Franchise Advantage in 2026: How Agentic AI Delivers Brand Consistency and Local Agility by Davide Petramala • 2 min read

The Franchise Advantage in 2026: How Agentic AI Delivers Brand Consistency and Local Agility

Happy New Year! 🎉
 2026 will be the year AI stops being a pilot and starts paying dividends.
This year my mission is simple: partner with merchants and operators to launch voice + conversational AI that actually moves the needle.
Retail:
 • 24/7 “smart answering” that captures every call, answers FAQs, and routes orders—freeing floor staff to serve shoppers.
 • Faster click-to-collect, real-time inventory Q&A, and proactive pickup reminders that lift conversion and NPS.
Health & Wellness:
 • Book and reschedule appointments by voice, handle membership questions, and follow up on missed calls automatically.
 • Front-desk relief during peak times so teams can focus on members—not ringing phones.
Why I’m bullish: brands using SoundHound’s voice AI are reclaiming staff hours, reducing labor costs, and boosting reviews by simply never missing a call and answering on the first ring. If you’re ready to turn AI into real revenue and happier customers, let’s build your first use case together.

DM me or comment “AI2026” and I’ll share a quick blueprint tailored to your locations.
 #NewYear #VoiceAI #CustomerExperience

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For years, businesses experimented with Conversational AI.
 In 2026, that experimentation ends.

We’re entering the era of Agentic AI—AI that doesn’t just talk, but acts.
This shift is bigger than chatbots or automation. Agentic AI is becoming a true digital employee: answering calls, completing bookings, resolving issues, following up on leads, and updating systems end-to-end.

The impact is already clear across retail, fitness, franchises, and public services:
 • Lower operational overhead
 • Higher customer satisfaction
 • More revenue captured from every interaction
I’ve kicked off a new series exploring why 2026 is the tipping point—and what this means for leaders building scalable, customer-first operations.

👉 Read the full article: 2026: The Year Agentic AI Becomes the Indispensable Business Partner

 #AgenticAI #EnterpriseAI #DigitalEmployees #VoiceAI #CustomerExperience #FutureOfWork #BusinessTransformation

For years, businesses invested in conversational AI and chatbots hoping for efficiency gains. Some value showed up—but mostly at the edges. Too many s

2026: The Year Agentic AI Becomes the Indispensable Business Partner

Retail AI has reached an inflection point.

In 2026, the winners won’t be defined by how well their AI answers questions—but by how often it completes outcomes.

In this article, I explore the rise of Agentic AI and the Autonomous Store:
Turning inbound calls into completed sales
Resolving service issues instantly
Automating operations without adding headcount
Completion rate is the new competitive advantage.
 
Curious how leading retailers are closing the loop? 👇
#NRF2026 #AgenticAI #FutureOfRetail #RetailTechnology #CustomerExperience #VoiceCommerce #AutonomousStore

What if every phone call and digital inquiry didn't just get an answer, but a resolved outcome? In 2026, Agentic AI transforms retail from a field of 

Open article: The Autonomous Store - How Agentic AI is the Ultimate Retail Associate in 2026 by Davide Petramala • 3 min read

The Autonomous Store - How Agentic AI is the Ultimate Retail Associate in 2026

AI agents aren’t tomorrow’s bet—they’re today’s competitive edge. In my new article, I unpack the 3-layer agent stack (infrastructure → horizontal enterprise → deep vertical) and what it means for P&L owners who need results now: 

lower cost-to-serve, faster cycle times, and consistent, compliant customer experiences.
Inside the post:

• Where AI is commoditizing—and where advantage still compounds
• Why voice-first agents win for real-world tasks and frontline ops
• How platforms like SoundHound deploy voice agents to capture missed demand, assist staff, and standardize service at scale

If you’re leading growth and operational excellence in 2026, this is a must-read.

🔗 https://lnkd.in/gv-fumha

Curious what an agent roadmap looks like for your org? Comment “ROADMAP” or DM me and I’ll share a quick framework you can run with your team.
#DigitalTransformation #AIAgents #OperationalExcellence

Open article: The AI Agent Landscape Is Exploding — AI agents aren’t the future — they’re the present. by medium.com

The AI Agent Landscape Is Exploding — AI agents aren’t the future — they’re the present.

Agentic AI doesn’t just answer questions—it finishes the job. Tours, waivers, rebooking, billing…done. See how gyms are reclaiming staff hours and lifting NPS with SoundHound voice AI. Book a strategy session.
#AgenticAI #VoiceAI #SoundHound

Most gym “bots” just answer questions. Agentic AI actually finishes the job. It books tours, sends waivers, matches trainers, rebooks missed classes, 

Open article: Gyms in 2026: An AI Operator That Manages Members End-to-End by Davide Petramala • 3 min read

Gyms in 2026: An AI Operator That Manages Members End-to-End

Another great opportunity to see the massive innovation we are bringing and delivering to the Customers Service/Experience industry

Heading to Orlando next week? 🌴

Stop by SoundHound's booth #303 at Customer Contact Week for live demonstrations of agentic, voice-first AI agents for call centers and to speak with our team of experts!

See you there 👋

Gianna Arantes, Shawnna DelHierro and 2 other attendees

View event: Meet SoundHound AI at CCW Orlando!

Wed, Jan 21, 8:00 AM - Fri, Jan 23, 7:00 PM EST

Proud moment! Today we unveiled agentic voice commerce for cars and TVs—AI agents that can order food, make dinner reservations, pay for parking, and even book tickets while you’re on the go. This is a big step toward turning every screen and surface into a voice-first storefront. SoundHound AI

What it means:
 • Automotive: safer, hands-free transactions from the dash—reservations via OpenTable and parking via Parkopedia, plus service scheduling and more. SoundHound AI

 • Living room commerce: say it, see it, buy it—our agentic platform brings the same capabilities to smart TVs. SoundHound AI

 • An open ecosystem: our Amelia 7 platform orchestrates multiple agents (MCP/A2A-optimized), so brands can plug in their own or third-party agents to build the exact experiences they want. SoundHound AI

Why I’m excited:
We’re not just demoing cool features—we’re operationalizing voice commerce at scale. SoundHound already powers millions of products and processes billions of interactions annually, giving us the real-world data and reliability needed to make agentic experiences seamless for consumers and profitable for brands. SoundHound AI

If you’re in automotive, restaurants, retail, or customer service, let’s talk about how agentic voice can grow revenue, cut friction, and elevate CX—while our proven Smart Answering and ordering solutions keep your operations humming 24/7.

#VoiceCommerce #AgenticAI #CustomerExperience

CES 2026: SoundHound AI Unveils Agentic Voice Commerce for Vehicles and TVs, With AI Agents that Order Food, Make Dinner Reservations, Pay for Parking, and Book Tickets On the Go 🤖

Read more: https://hubs.li/Q03Zr20J0

#CES2026

I'm attending Meet SoundHound AI At NRF 2026!. Retail leaders: if missed calls and thin staffing are dragging CX, come see what Voice AI can do—live at booth 6745. Teams are seeing 24/7 coverage, $3K+ monthly labor savings per location, and even 30x ROI. I’ll be there—let’s talk rollout, ops impact, and fast wins. Join me on January 11.
 #NRF2026 #RetailTransformation #VoiceAI

We’re heading to Retail’s Big Show — #NRF2026! 🛍️✨

Stop by booth 6745 to experience our AI Agents built for retail transformation. 🤖💡

Learn more or book a meeting with one of our AI experts 🔗 https://lnkd.in/ePHr9nFz

Andrew Weisselberg, Gianna Arantes and 7 other attendees

View event: Meet SoundHound AI At NRF 2026!

Sun, Jan 11, 8:00 AM - Tue, Jan 13, 7:00 PM EST

Municipal leaders are under pressure to do more with less—every day.
Budgets are tight. Hiring is slow. Expectations for 24/7 service keep rising.
In my latest article, I explore how digital employees are helping cities scale citizen services, emergency communications, and internal operations—without adding headcount or burnout.

From 311 workflows to storm alerts to procurement support, this is about closing issues, not just logging tickets.

📖 Read the article here
 💬 Comment or DM “CIVIC” if you want the workflows and pilot checklist.
 #GovTech #MunicipalIT #DigitalGovernment #AgenticAI #SmartCities #PublicSectorInnovation

The Reality Cities Are Facing Municipal leaders are being asked to deliver more services, faster responses, and higher transparency—without proportion

Open article: Municipalities 2026: Doing More With Less—How Digital Employees Help Communities Scale Service 24/7 by Davide Petramala • 3 min read

Municipalities 2026: Doing More With Less—How Digital Employees Help Communities Scale Service 24/7

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