Odeon cinemas no longer accept phone calls from customers, instead directing them to a website or social media for assistance, a shift highlighting a growing trend of businesses adopting AI-driven customer service solutions.
Calling your local Odeon chain now results in a greeting from a robotic voice informing you that guest queries are no longer taken by phone. The website offers a “live chat” feature, staffed by “Odi, the Odeon AI assistant” between 10:15 a.m. and 4:45 p.m.
This isn’t simply a complaint from those less familiar with technology; artificial intelligence chatbots are often frustrating and prone to inaccuracies, proving a poor substitute for human interaction.
The move reflects a broader business environment where companies are increasingly implementing AI to reduce costs and demonstrate innovation—or, as it’s often framed, to elevate service efficiency and scalability.
While AI represents a potentially disruptive technology, some of the current enthusiasm may simply be a trend, with the technology being added to products and services for its own sake.
It’s easy to imagine a future where even simple tasks, like making a cup of coffee, become unnecessarily complicated by the need to interact with an AI that struggles to understand basic requests.
In fact, Bosch has already launched a “Personal AI Barista” featured at CES 2026, raising the question of whether our morning routines will soon require patience with artificial intelligence just to get a caffeine fix.
Customer service has become a significant casualty of the digital age, and older generations are likely to be the most affected by these changes.
For many, a quick phone call remains the most convenient way to get help, a preference that may not be accommodated as businesses continue to prioritize automated solutions.
