‘Customers prefer AI chatbots to humans’ says British Gas boss as 1,300 call centre staff axed

Chris O’Shea defends Centrica’s plans as it reports rise in retail profits despite falling customer numbers

The owner of British Gas has claimed that most households would rather speak with an AI chatbot than deal with the company’s staff as it prepares to cut 1,300 jobs from its call centres.

Centrica, the supplier’s FTSE 100 owner, plans to cut 800 jobs as the company carries out a “targeted deployment of AI tools”, on top of the 500 cutsit confirmed last month.