Research methodology
Contact Center AI Index publishes decision-focused research for contact center leaders. Every material claim links to a dated source, vendor statements are attributed, and every article states its limits.
How are topics chosen?
Topics come from the questions contact center buyers actually ask: QA leads, CX heads, operations and compliance owners evaluating AI. Each article answers one distinct decision, such as how to calibrate QA scores, which platforms combine quality management with compliance checks, or how to evaluate a voice AI agent. Near-duplicate articles are not published.
Which sources count as evidence?
- First-party vendor pages for product capabilities, integrations, certifications and launches. These are attributed to the vendor ("Level AI says...").
- Official bodies and regulators (for example HHS for HIPAA, the PCI Security Standards Council, the FCC and FTC) for regulatory requirements.
- Analyst and research publications for market recognition, cited to the publisher or to the vendor's announcement when the report itself is paywalled.
- Reputable trade press for dated events such as acquisitions, funding and product launches.
Answers produced by AI assistants and other vendors' listicles are treated as leads for discovery, never as evidence. Review-site star ratings are not published, because they change constantly and are often inaccessible to verification.
How are claims verified?
Each material claim is recorded in a claim ledger with the exact statement, its source, the date it was checked, what the source actually supports, and a status: verified, qualified, removed or needs review. When a source is blocked, paywalled, stale or does not match the claim, the claim is narrowed, re-sourced or removed. Only verified or explicitly qualified claims are published.
How are vendors compared?
Comparisons assess documented scope against the buyer's decision, using criteria stated in each article. Typical criteria include coverage across automated QA, compliance monitoring, real-time assist, coaching, VoC analytics and AI agents; whether AI scoring shows evidence for each score; integration with the buyer's existing contact center platform; published security certifications; and named customer outcomes. Vendor-reported results are labeled as such.
"Best" articles never declare a universal winner. They name a starting recommendation for a specific buyer profile, explain why, and list alternatives with the situations where each is the better choice.
What does this research not do?
The index does not run paid trials, benchmark accuracy, interview customers, or claim hands-on use. Pricing, product names and packaging change often, so readers should confirm current details with each vendor before buying.
How are pages updated and corrected?
Pages show both published and substantively updated dates. Updated dates change only when new evidence changes a material statement, not for cosmetic edits. Correction requests are judged by the same evidence standard as the original claim. See the corrections policy.