As part of our Best of 2025 CX Iconoclast series, we revisit one of the year’s standout episodes: Richard Owen’s conversation with longtime analytics and AI leader Murli Buluswar.

Murli explains how AI is finally moving from hype to practical value—especially in complex, high-stakes industries like financial services. His framing aligns directly with the Customer AI Masterclass: the shift from lagging surveys to predictive intelligence, from “CX theater” to financial rigor, and from technology-led thinking to people-led transformation.

1. The Shift to Pragmatic AI

Murli describes modern AI as the intersection of curiosity, science, and human behavior—now powerful enough to replicate cognitive tasks at scale. This mirrors the foundation laid in the Customer AI Masterclass Unit 2, where generative, predictive, and prescriptive AI are introduced as the core toolkit for modern customer understanding.

In the Customer AI Masterclass, Lesson 2.3 (Three Types of AI: The Three Amigos of the Customer AI Toolkit) introduces this same triad and how each type contributes to decision-making rather than replacing human judgment.

2. Three AI Opportunities Reshaping Financial Services

Democratized intelligence
AI that delivers context-rich insights and reasoning to every employee—not just raw data.
→ This connects to the Customer AI Masterclass, lesson 4.2 (The Customer AI Insights Framework), where intelligence is shown to flow from data to front-line decisions.

Automated risk & controls
The industry is shifting toward near real-time detection of operational breakages.

In the Customer AI Masterclass, Lesson 3.6 (Data Engineering) outlines similar concepts for monitoring data and system health continuously.

Cognitive automation
AI reduces manual work in mid- and back-office processes, improving speed and reducing errors.

This aligns with Lesson 5.5 (Agentic AI and Customer Experience) in the Customer AI Masterclass, where automated agents handle routine tasks while humans handle judgment-intensive work.

3. Turning CX Into a Financial Discipline

Murli argues that CX has historically been treated too softly. He calls for two major shifts:

1. Quantify the financial value of experiences
Instead of sentiment, leaders need to understand how different journeys influence revenue and retention.

In the Customer AI Masterclass, Lesson 6.4 (The Customer AI Financial Model), it is shown how to connect journey changes directly to NRR and EBIT.

2. Build an always-on customer “temperature check”
Firms can’t rely only on surveys—they must infer sentiment from behavior and interactions.

This mirrors the Customer AI Masterclass, lesson 1.3 (CX Metrics and How You Should Use Them), which reframes surveys as one small input into a broader predictive system.

4. Are We There Yet?

Murli believes the technology is ready—the gap now is organizational. Companies must redesign processes, roles, and governance so AI becomes part of daily operations.

This is outlined in the Customer AI Masterclass, lesson 7.2 (The Maturity Model), which describes how organizations move from experimentation to embedded Customer AI.

5. The 70% Problem: Culture Over Tech

Murli is clear:

• 10% is tools and data

• 20% is imagination

• 70% is people and culture

The next decade, he says, will reshape roles and expectations faster than any period in modern history.

The Customer AI Masterclass, Unit 8 (The Customer AI Leader) makes the same argument: technical capability is meaningless without cultural adaptability and leadership alignment.

What Leaders Should Take Away

• CX must be tied to financial outcomes, not just sentiment.

• Intelligence has to be continuous and behavior-driven.

• AI demands operating model redesign, not bolt-on dashboards.

• Cultural readiness—not technology—is the real differentiator.

Murli’s closing point captures the moment: you either shape the change, or the change shapes you.