TRAI allows telecom customer service to use AI agents and requires 24×7 service
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), through the November 2, 2026 amendment to the complaint handling regulations, allows telecom operators to provide customer service using AI agents, automated systems, or a hybrid of human and automated methods, but complaint centers must shift to 24×7 operation, with human assistance retained for at least 16 hours per day. The new rules also require an online feedback survey after each complaint is resolved and quarterly publication of the results, quarterly reports submitted to the CEO or board of directors, the establishment of a grievance oversight committee including representatives of consumer organizations, and a reduction of the grievance window from 30 days to 15 days along with the elimination of the advisory committee step. The report notes that the regulations do not define the specific meaning of "appropriate human oversight," nor is accountability clear when AI agents make errors.
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TRAI's new rules allow telecom customer service to use AI agents and mandate 24×7 service, while leaving gaps in human oversight and accountability.
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Telecom operators in India can now use artificial intelligence (AI) agents to handle consumer complaints, says the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), according to the press release it released after the initial consultations in May 2026.
TRAI introduced the mandate to ensure round-the-clock customer support through amendments to the Telecom Consumers Complaint Redressal (Fourth Amendment) Regulations, 2026, on November 2. However, human support should be available for at least 16 hours, the amended regulations state.
What has changed:
Round-the-clock support: Complaint Centres must run 24×7 instead of 16 hours. Operators can use human staff, automated systems, AI agents or a mix, but humans must be available for at least 16 hours daily.
Feedback and board reporting: Operators must run an online feedback survey after every resolved complaint or appeal and publish the results quarterly. They must also place a quarterly report on complaints, appeals and survey results before their CEO or board.
Oversight committee: Each operator must set up a Consumer Grievance Redressal Oversight Committee with consumer-organisation representatives. It must meet at least once a year.
Appeals down to 15 days: The window to appeal a decision shrinks from 30 days to 15. The Advisory Committee stage is scrapped. Additionally, consumers can file complaints, appeals and service requests through the operator’s mobile app.
Enforcement: TRAI can audit records and review performance reports. It can impose financial disincentives for non-compliant disposal of complaints and for late or missing quarterly reports.
AI-powered customer support with ‘appropriate human oversight’: “Consumer support through Complaint Centres will be available round the clock on all days of the week, instead of the existing 16-hour arrangement. Such support may be provided through human representatives, automated systems, AI agents, other customer-centric technological solutions, or a combination thereof. Human assistance shall be available for at least sixteen hours daily. Technology-based solutions shall function with appropriate human oversight. This will ensure ease and convenience to consumers and give flexibility to service providers in manning the Complaint Centres.”
Who is accountable for AI agents’ actions? The press release does not define “appropriate human oversight”. Therefore, it is not clear whether it means that a human must review each AI decision, sample conversations, or only provide mandatory human intervention in case of escalations. Additionally, liability for AI agents’ actions is also unclear: Who is to be held accountable when an AI agent mishandles a complaint, the telco operator or the AI service provider or vendor?
Read MediaNama’s coverage of the COAI discussion here, which addressed the accountability framework and the feasibility of human-in-the-loop for telecom operations.
Why does the 24×7 mandate matter for AI companies? Nikhil Pahwa, founder and editor of MediaNama, said telecom operators “probably receive the highest number of support calls of any business in the country.” He said AI voice technology has been rising, and that a 24×7 expectation makes telecom a large market for AI customer-support firms.
A round-the-clock requirement also raises costs for operators. AI agents are the obvious way to cover the hours when human staffing is optional. This links to MediaNama’s earlier reporting on AI agents in telecom [link: earlier MediaNama story on AI agents in telecom].
Pahwa also said the mandate could spread beyond the telecom sector if other regulators copy the requirement of mandating round-the-clock customer support, while permitting operators to use AI agents.
“This could pave the way for other regulators to also put in a requirement for 24-hour customer support.” – Nikhil Pahwa
Also read:
Telcos must answer for third-party AI failures under TRAI’s draft rules
Telcos and DoT pushes for ‘light-touch’ risk-based AI regulations
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