Teleperformance shares plunge on AI disruption concerns (updated)
28/02/2024 14:57
(Adds Teleperformance reaction in paragraphs 5-6; details on
Klarna AI assistant para 8)
By Danilo Masoni, Stephanie Hamel and Augustin Turpin
MILAN, Feb 28 (Reuters) - Teleperformance TEPRF.PA
shares plunged to a 7-year low on Wednesday over concerns
artificial intelligence (AI) will disrupt the French call centre
firm's business.
Two traders and a Midcap Partners analyst linked the drop to
a statement by Swedish fintech company Klarna which spoke of a
boost to its results from its AI customer service assistant,
powered by Open AI.
Teleperformance shares were down 19% to 107.9 euros in Paris
at 1415 GMT, off lows for the day but still on track for their
largest one-day decline since November 2022.
The shares had fallen as much as 29.3% at one point on
Wednesday, hitting 94.28 euros, their lowest level since
December 2016.
The company sought to reassure investors with a statement in
response to the share price slide and said it would announce
financial results as planned on March 6.
"(Our) current activity in no way reflects negative
conclusions in its business that could be drawn from
technological developments mentioned in this communication," the
group's management said in their press release.
Teleperformance also pointed out that artificial
intelligence is already deployed in solutions it offers, and
that it continues to develop R&D programs internally and in
partnership with technology companies.
Klarna said in a release its AI assistant has handled two
thirds of its customer service chats since it was launched a
month ago.
The group added that its assistant is doing the equivalent
work of 700 full-time agents and is more accurate in errand
resolution, leading to a 25% drop in repeat inquiries.
As a result, the Swedish company forecasts a $40 million
boost to profit in 2024.
Teleperformance started 2023 with a strong push towards
generative AI, announcing that 20% to 30% of its activities
would be automated within the next three years, before
downplaying expectations due to a limited response to the new
technology from clients.
In 2023, analysts had already pointed to Teleperformance as
a company that might be vulnerable to the disruptive effects of
AI.
($1 = 0.9236 euros)
(Reporting by Danilo Masoni, Augustin Turpin and Stéphanie
Hamel; Editing by Amanda Cooper, Sharon Singleton and Keith
Weir)
((mailto:Danilo.Masoni@tr.com; Reuters Messaging:
rm://danilo.masoni.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net/))