AI-activated value co-creation. An exploratory study of conversational agents

This paper aims to provide in-depth insight into the value co-creation around conversational agents — a solution based on Artificial Intelligence (AI) that replaces customer service employees. Using the concepts of value-in-use from information technology and the ARA Model as a theoretical lens, we investigated which resources are combined to create an AI-based solution, how providers and clients cooperate, and what value is an outcome of co-creation in the case of advanced technologies in the B2B context. Based on multiple case studies on leading providers of conversational agents, this research demonstrates the complexities of the process. Our findings reveal significant differences in informational, strategic, transactional, and transformational dimensions of value-in-use of conversational agents (CA) from other technologies. It shows that AI-activated value is dynamic, context-dependent, and fuzzy. This paper also highlights the role of resource interaction and non-technological factors that enable conversational agents to reflect and replace human activities.