AI is a powerful leveller: Zendesk’s Adrian Fallow unpacks tech’s impact on Indian SMBs

When customer service software company Zendesk set foot in India with a physical office in Bengaluru in 2016, it saw the country as a natural focus area of its growth strategy.

The same year, Zendesk had even made an appearance during YourStory’s TechSparks event to engage with the local startup ecosystem.

With India’s small and medium businesses (SMBs) also keeping pace with the large enterprises in implementing AI to deliver better customer experience (CX), Zendesk now sees an even bigger opportunity.

The San Francisco-headquartered company believes AI will be the game-changer for SMBs, where small companies do not have to undertake large investments to deploy Zendesk’s solutions while also reaping the maximum benefits.

In an e-mail interaction with Enterprise Story, Adrian Fallow, Global Senior Vice President, SMB, Zendesk said Indian SMBs are looking at customer experience (CX) as a core differentiator. “AI is now central to this transformation, enabling even the leanest businesses to deliver personal, rapid, and reliable customer support.”

Edited excerpts:

Enterprise Story (ES): How does Zendesk see the SMB market in India?

Adrian Fallow (AF): India’s SMB sector is among the most vibrant and opportunity-rich markets in the region. With over 51 million micro, small, and medium businesses making up 15-20% of the country’s GDP, the sheer scale and energy in this market are incredible.

Competition is fierce, and many Indian SMBs face the daily challenge of doing more with less—whether it’s tighter marketing budgets, smaller teams, or limited infrastructure.

This is why so many are now looking at customer experience (CX) as a core differentiator. AI is now central to this transformation, enabling even the leanest businesses to deliver personal, rapid, and reliable customer support — delivering customer support that rivals much larger enterprises.

Today’s SMB leaders view AI not just as a buzzword, but as a practical tool that empowers their teams to act smarter and respond faster while maintaining an authentically human touch. Findings from the latest Zendesk CX Trends report highlight this urgency, with 86% of Indian consumers perceiving a significant gap emerging between companies that successfully embed AI in customer service and those that don't. For smaller companies, that’s a clear call to action.

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At Zendesk, we understand just how fast things are moving for Indian SMBs. That’s why we’ve focused on making our AI-powered CX solutions as easy to deploy and scale as possible, helping businesses not just keep up but get ahead. As customer expectations continue to rise across India, we believe the ability to deliver consistently great, AI-enabled service isn’t just a nice-to-have—it’s essential for long-term success.

ES: How does Zendesk view the adoption of AI among SMBs in India?

AF: While there’s no doubt that AI is reshaping the competitive landscape, what stands out in India’s SMB sector is the pragmatic approach many businesses are taking. Rather than adopting technology for its own sake, there’s a growing awareness of the need to focus on real, measurable outcomes—improvements to operations, customer service, and efficiency.

For many SMBs, AI is a key enabler for scaling–whether it’s expanding across India’s diverse markets or serving customers internationally. It bridges the gap between limited resources and rising customer expectations, allowing them to confidently pursue growth while maintaining high standards of service.

In a market where 70% of consumers say they’d switch to a competitor after just one bad experience—a figure that’s grown by 10 percentage points in the past year alone—getting customer experience right isn’t optional, especially for businesses working with leaner resources. The stakes are particularly high, but AI is proving to be a powerful leveller, giving SMBs a way to punch above their weight by delivering the kind of speed, accuracy, and personalisation that today’s customers demand.

ES: How are advancements in AI making AI-powered CX more affordable and accessible for SMBs?

AF: AI breakthroughs have removed many of the old obstacles for SMBs—no longer requiring deep technical expertise or expensive, custom solutions. Pre-trained models, no-code workflows, and seamless cloud integrations now let businesses adopt AI-powered CX tools in just days, not months. That means teams can focus on customer relationships, not grappling with complex setups, and start seeing tangible results almost immediately.

Affordability is getting a rethink as well. Traditional models often charge based on volume, meaning every interaction comes at a cost, even if it doesn’t lead to successful resolutions. Newer, outcome-based pricing models, such as Zendesk’s, are changing that—aligning costs with real outcomes. For SMBs, this means more predictable spending and confidence to scale without unnecessary overhead.

With these shifts, more SMBs are able to access advanced automation, real-time insights, and sophisticated support capabilities that were previously out of reach for most smaller businesses. Ultimately, it’s about helping smaller businesses do more, delivering fast, personalised experiences—without stretching resources thin.

ES: Are SMBs adopting AI agents?

AF: Today’s climate demands more agility and smarter engagement than ever—customers expect brands to understand and support them quickly, while SMBs face ongoing pressure to make every resource count. Many are turning to AI to reduce costs, to respond faster, and to stay ahead in a constantly changing market.

To truly keep up, businesses need more than basic automation or chatbots that handle fragments of the customer journey. The real value comes from having intelligent systems that don’t just respond, but bring together AI agents, automation, workflows and analytics into one single system to ensure every issue has a clear path to resolution.