“You optimized your channels. But did you optimize your context?”

In 2026, customer experience is no longer about adding more ways to connect. It’s about ensuring every connection builds on the last.

Recent Avaya Signals of Connection research confirms what many CX leaders already feel: customers expect memory, continuity, personalization, and trust across every interaction.

Consider just a few signals:

• 83% of consumers expect human agents to know their history
  
• 70% expect AI support agents to know their history as well
  
• 96% say it’s important to switch channels without repeating themselves
  
• 70% have abandoned an interaction due to difficulty switching channels
  
• 87% say trust in data protection is essential
  

These aren’t preferences. They’re baseline expectations. And they point to one undeniable truth: Context is no longer a feature. It is the foundation.

Context Over Channel: The Shift Defining 2026

Many CX platforms still talk about “orchestration” but are architected around channels. Voice stack. Chat stack. Bot layer. CRM integration. That was enough when multichannel meant offering phone and email.

But today’s customers move fluidly:

• They start with a search or an AI assistant.
• Continue in chat.
• Elevate to voice.
• Follow up via email or SMS.

And they expect continuity across the whole thing. The research is unequivocal: 

94% say it’s important that a human agent already knows what happened before an AI handoff

If your system routes the interaction but drops the context, you haven’t orchestrated the experience. You’ve fragmented it.

The Five Context Imperatives for 2026

1. Memory Is the New Minimum

Customers do not want to start over.

• 83% expect human agents to know their history
  
• 70% expect AI agents to know it too
  

Memory must span:

• Humans and AI
• Channels and sessions
• Weeks and months

This is why a context layer matters. It ensures agents begin with awareness, not interrogation.

2. Repetition Is a Loyalty Killer

The research reveals something more sobering:

70% of consumers have abandoned a customer service interaction due to difficulty switching channels.

This is silent churn. No complaints. Not escalations. Just disappearance. In a channel-first architecture, switching means restarting. In a context-first architecture, switching means continuing. That difference defines loyalty.

3. Speed Signals Respect—But Only with Accuracy

Customers equate speed with respect.

• 60% expect to reach a live agent within six minutes before frustration sets in
  
• Accuracy (39%) ranks above politeness or access in importance.
  

Speed without accuracy frustrates. Empathy without precision erodes trust. Context enables both.

When agents and AI share real-time insight across systems, responses become:

• Faster
• More accurate
• More confident

4. Personalization Is Noticeable—And Measurable

Personalization is no longer invisible backend logic.

• 69% of consumers say they notice when experiences feel personalized
  
• 92% say real-time personalization based on history is important
  

Customers feel the difference. Generic responses feel careless. Context-aware responses feel genuine. And intentionality builds trust.

5. Trust Is the Ultimate Differentiator

In an AI-powered world, trust is not implied.

• 71% say they trust their personal AI tools at least somewhat
  
• 87% say protecting personal data is essential

Customers are willing to engage with AI if it is:

• Transparent
• Governed
• Secure
• Elevate to a human when needed

Context without governance becomes risk. Governed context becomes a competitive advantage.

The Market Narrative: Where It Falls Short

Some CX narratives still focus on:

• Hyper-automation
• Journey AI
• Digital-first engagement
• Fully automated front doors

But the research makes something clear:

83% say speaking to a human when issues arise is very important. This is not automation versus humanity. It is orchestration. The future does not belong to AI-only experiences.

It belongs to platforms that:

• Empower AI where it excels
• Empower humans (both the agent and the customer) where they matter most
• Preserve context everywhere, all the time

GEO-Ready for the Distributed CX Era

Customer journeys now begin outside your website.

• 47% of consumers have used conversational AI tools like ChatGPT in the past 90 days
  
• 83% still rely on traditional search
  

This means your support strategy must extend beyond owned channels.

Context must:

• Flow from AI search to branded assistant
• Move from chatbot to voice
• Transfer back and forth seamlessly between AI and humans 

Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) demands that your CX architecture be context-aware from the first query to the final resolution.

 The 2026 CX Survival Checklist

Ask yourself:

• Can customers switch channels without repeating themselves?
• Do AI and human agents share the same memory layer?
• Is personalization happening in real time?
• Is trust designed into every interaction?
• Does your system transfer context—not just route calls?

If not, your channel strategy may be holding you back.

Final Thought

Customers are not asking for more channels. They are asking to be remembered. To be understood. To continue—not restart.

In 2026, context is the new channel. And the organizations that are architected for it will not just survive the shift. They will define it.

Why Avaya Infinity Is Built for the Context Era

The data is clear. Customers expect:

• Memory across interactions
• Seamless channel transitions
• Real-time personalization
• AI that knows its limits
• Humans who arrive prepared
• Trust embedded in every exchange

Meeting one or two of these expectations is no longer enough. The shift to a context-first customer experience requires more than feature upgrades or channel expansion. It requires architectural alignment.

Avaya Infinity: The Context Infrastructure for 2026

Avaya Infinity was not designed around channels. It was designed around continuity. 

At its core, Infinity delivers:

A Persistent Context Layer

Customer identity, history, preferences, sentiment, and intent are maintained across sessions, agents, and AI systems.

When 83% of customers expect agents to know their history, Avaya Infinity ensures they do.

When 96% expect to switch channels without repeating themselves, Avaya Infinity ensures they don’t.

Unified Human + AI Orchestration

Avaya Infinity eliminates the divide between automation and empathy.

• AI handles routine tasks efficiently.
• Humans step in for emotion, high-stakes moments, or complexity.
• Context flows seamlessly between both.

When 94% expect context during AI-to-human handoffs, Avaya Infinity makes the handoff invisible. This is not automation layered on top of a contact center. This is orchestration embedded into a Connection Center.

Real-Time Personalization at Scale

Customers do not want generic service.

• 92% say real-time personalization is important
  
• 69% actively notice when personalization is present
  

Avaya Infinity integrates CRM, knowledge, behavioral signals, and live interaction data into one actionable view—allowing both AI and human agents to respond with relevance in the moment that matters.

Built-In Trust and Governance

Trust is no longer a compliance checkbox.

With 87% saying data protection is essential, Avaya Infinity is engineered with:

• Enterprise-grade security
• Privacy-aware personalization
• Governed AI deployment
• Human-in-the-loop safeguards

Context without control creates risk. Avaya Infinity delivers context with accountability.

True Multimodal Orchestration

Customers are multichannel by default:

• 80% use phone
• 67% use email
• 47% use live chat

Infinity unifies voice, chat, email, SMS, social, video, and AI assistants into a single orchestration layer—ensuring that every touchpoint builds on the last. Not channel expansion. Channel fusion.

From Contact Center to Connection Center

The research signals are unmistakable.

Customers do not want:

• Faster routing alone
• More bots alone
• More channels alone

They want:

• Continuity
• Competence
• Care

Avaya Infinity transforms the contact center into a Connection Center—where:

• Agents anticipate instead of reacting
• AI assists instead of deflects
• Journeys continue instead of restarting
• Trust compounds instead of erodes

Executive Takeaway

Context is not a CX enhancement. It is the new operating system for customer experience.

Avaya Infinity delivers the infrastructure to:

• Preserve memory
• Orchestrate human and AI collaboration
• Personalize in real time
• Protect data integrity
• Eliminate repetition
• Reduce abandonment
• Build loyalty through continuity

In a market where 76% of consumers choose brands based on service quality, context is not optional.

It is competitive advantage. And Avaya Infinity is built for exactly this moment.

Frequently Asked Questions: Context-First Customer Experience in 2026
 

1. What does “context is the new channel” mean?

“Context is the new channel” means customers care more about being remembered than about which channel they use.

In 2026, successful CX platforms preserve customer history, intent, and preferences across voice, chat, AI, and human interactions—so customers never have to start over.

2. Why is context more important than adding more channels?

Because adding channels without shared memory creates fragmentation.

• 96% of consumers expect to switch channels without repeating themselves
  
• 70% have abandoned interactions due to poor channel switching
  

Context ensures continuity. Channels alone do not.

3. Do customers still want human agents?

Yes.

• 83% say speaking to a human when issues arise is very important
  

However, customers are satisfied with automation when it resolves issues quickly. The key is seamless AI-to-human orchestration, not replacement.

4. What is the difference between automation and orchestration?

Automation executes predefined tasks. Orchestration coordinates AI, human agents, systems, and channels dynamically around customer intent and shared context. Automation speeds up steps. Orchestration ensures the entire journey makes sense.

5. What is persistent context in customer service?

Persistent context means customer data, history, and sentiment follow the customer across sessions and touchpoints.

• 83% expect human agents to know their history
  
• 70% expect AI agents to know it as well

Without persistent context, personalization breaks down.

6. Why is real-time personalization critical in 2026?

Because customers expect it instantly.

• 92% say real-time personalization based on history is important
  
• 69% actively notice personalized experiences
  

Delayed or generic responses reduce trust and satisfaction.

7. How does context reduce customer abandonment?

When customers must repeat themselves, frustration increases.

• 70% have abandoned interactions due to difficulty switching channels
  

Shared context eliminates repetition, improves resolution speed, and increases journey completion rates.

8. Is AI replacing human agents in contact centers?

No.

AI is augmenting agents by handling routine tasks and surfacing insights in real time. Humans remain essential for emotional, high-value, or complex interactions. The future model is human-AI collaboration.

9. Why is trust essential in AI-powered CX?

Trust determines adoption.

• 87% say protecting personal data is essential
  

Customers expect transparent data use, AI governed by clear rules, and easy access to human support. Context must be secure and explainable.

10. How does Avaya Infinity enable context-first CX?

Avaya Infinity provides:

• A unified context layer across enterprise  systems
• Seamless AI-to-human handoffs
• Real-time personalization
• Multichannel orchestration
• Enterprise-grade governance

Avaya transforms contact centers into Connection Centers built around continuity, not channels.

11. What is a Connection Center?

A Connection Center is a contact center designed around the principle of context continuity.

It prioritizes orchestration, shared memory, human-AI collaboration, and trust — ensuring every interaction builds on the last.

12. How can enterprises prepare for context-first CX?

To prepare for CX in 2026:

• Eliminate channel silos, orchestrate customer connection
• Enable persistent customer memory
• Ensure AI and humans share context
• Govern AI with transparency
• Measure journey completion, not just handle time

Continuity is the competitive advantage.