Munford outsmarted by AI avatar: we try Attensi RealTalk AI training solution

Insight Research is investigating practical AI solutions for convenience and mobility retail. This is useful because although many retailers are testing AI based tools, relatively few are yet adopting.

In fact, according to McKinsey & Company, only 11% of companies have production-grade generative AI at scale.

Insight’s ‘AI Round Table’ group of leading retailers and suppliers shares best practice in a collaborative way and investigates winning solutions. As part of this project, Insight Research CEO Dan Munford recently visited Attensi’s London office to explore Attensi’s RealTalk: the first role-play training solution to incorporate Agentic AI[1] and AI free-form dialogue with realistic, virtual humans. He was impressed:

“I had three big takeaways; these agentic intuitive avatars are highly intelligent and sensitive just like a human would be, plus it’s really suitable to our sector because it’s such a varied and customisable training tool which will develop colleagues and respond quickly to new situations. I have no doubt at at all that retailers will be making more and more use of products like this.”

Insight’s Attensi visit comes as new research shows that 75% of employees have experienced anxiety due to difficult workplace conversations and 72% of employees would welcome training on how to handle difficult conversations in the workplace, rising to 87% for Gen Z.

Interestingly, according to research, a majority of employees would welcome this training from an AI Virtual role-play trainer, rather than their manager. When asked if they would prefer role-play training from their manager or an AI Virtual trainer, employees were evenly split at 38% each way.

Remarkably, almost a quarter of respondents – 24% – expressed no preference between the AI trainer and the human manager. This will be welcome news for managers, who can save valuable time by handing training over to their AI Virtual Human colleagues.

In a front line retail environment which has become more challenging in recent years, the opportunity to engage in realistic and challenging conversations in role-play scenarios, interacting with AI-powered virtual humans across a wide range of disciplines is really useful. And as Munford discovered, RealTalkers don’t just talk back, they kick back too!

Lifelike and responsive at conversation pace, Attensi RealTalkers are engineered to feel real and push back when challenged. They are individually programmed to have realistic personality traits, human expressions, and character nuances. They can make you feel nervous and put you under pressure or shut down and close up if you push them too far – allowing you to practice EQ skills before in-person conversations.

Trond Aas, CEO of Attensi sees AI as an ally rather than a threat to employees:

“AI is an ally rather than a threat. Our human skills and EQ, particularly soft skills and interpersonal skills, are more important than ever. We know that people want more help with difficult conversations and Attensi RealTalk is the perfect partner. One of the most important use cases for AI is to upskill employees at scale in these areas. Employers need to embrace the power of AI and adopt the right AI tools to help their employees grow and excel, close skills gaps, and adapt to change. Attensi RealTalk is a gamechanger in workplace training.”

Clients include Circle K, Hiscox, YMCA, London Business School, Boehringer Ingelheim and KPMG.

Learn more about Attensi RealTalk here.

[1] Agentic AI refers to intelligent systems that act autonomously, demonstrating the ability to make decisions based on its environment, and pursue goals with minimal human intervention. In Attensi RealTalk, Agentic AI plays a key role in providing the required level of control needed to steer the conversation.