Comunicano: “Press 1 Is Dead”—Why SIP-Native AI Ends the IVR Era, Podcast
“Press 1 is dead. If you haven’t integrated AI into your core telephony stack, you’re on the path to obsolescence.” — Andy Abramson, Founder & CEO, Comunicano
In this conversation with Doug Green, Publisher of Technology Reseller News, Andy Abramson—32 years into leading Comunicano—explains why legacy, menu-tree IVRs are being displaced by SIP-native AI and real-time voice agents. The result: faster resolution, lower latency, and human-like interactions that finally match the urgency of today’s callers.
What’s changing
- SIP ↔ AI interconnect: Direct SIP trunking into AI (e.g., OpenAI) turns agents into callable endpoints—simplifying deployment much like early CPaaS did.
- Network path matters: Zero-hop/HD direct connectivity (e.g., CarrierX/Found/freeconferencecall.com) and Cloudflare’s global edge for WebRTC cut jitter, packet loss, and delay—feeding cleaner “robot food” to AI.
- Voice that sounds human: Advances in neural voices (e.g., ElevenLabs) raise comprehension and comfort, improving CX outcomes.
- Tool orchestration made simple: MCP/agent frameworks (e.g., Anthropic-style tool calling) connect CRM/ERP and data sources without brittle middleware.
Who wins, who loses
- Winners: UCaaS/CPaaS and AI-forward CCaaS that treat AI agents as first-class endpoints; telcos bundling AI with SIP routing and data plans; high-volume enterprises offloading Tier-1 to real-time AI.
- At risk: IVR-only vendors, low-end CCaaS, and speech-to-text middleware that don’t adopt AI—“adopt or die.”
Why it matters for MSPs & channel partners
- The migration path is here now: swap tree-based IVR for NLP-driven, real-time voice agents, integrate with existing stacks via SIP, and monetize AI minutes + memories.
- Business impact: shorter handle times, higher first-contact resolution, lower OpEx, and fewer abandoned calls—especially for customers calling with urgent needs.
This episode includes a slide presentation outlining the end of menu trees, the SIP-AI architecture, and four go-to-market “wins” for carriers, UC/CPaaS, CCaaS, and large enterprises.
Learn more about Andy’s work at comunicano.com (one “m”) and his commentary at AndyAbramson.com and on LinkedIn.
Published on 19 hours ago