What’s New with Webex: Highlights from Cisco Live 2025

Cisco Live 2025, held in sunny San Diego from June 8–12, brought a wave of exciting updates for Webex, showcasing how Cisco is doubling down on AI to revolutionize hybrid work and customer experiences. From smarter calling features to immersive video devices, here’s a rundown of the biggest announcements that caught everyone’s attention.

Smarter Calling with Webex

Webex Calling got a serious upgrade, making it easier for businesses to connect with customers in a way that feels personal and seamless:

AI Receptionist: Picture this—an AI that answers calls with a natural, human-like voice, handling inquiries like a pro. It’s like having a virtual front desk that never takes a break.
Texting with MMS: Agents can now send images, links, or meeting invites right from the Webex app. It’s a small tweak that makes customer chats way more dynamic.
Voicemail Transcription: No more replaying voicemails to catch every word. AI transcribes them instantly, saving time and reducing errors.
Microsoft Teams Integration: For Teams users, Webex Calling now feels like part of the family. You get AI-powered call summaries, voicemail transcription, and even native call recording—all without leaving Teams.
Coming Soon Features (highlighted earlier at Enterprise Connect 2025):
- Text Queues: Rolling out in early 2026, this lets agents text customers directly from Webex, perfect for sharing quick links or directions.
- AI Assistant for Agents: Real-time tips and insights to help agents shine during customer calls.
- Call Queue Recording: Great for compliance and quality checks.
- Click-to-Call SDK (Software Development Kit): Customers can start a call from a website without logging in, making support a breeze.

Webex AI Agent Steps Up

The Webex AI Agent stole the show with its ability to handle customer interactions 24/7, whether by voice or digital channels. It’s designed to feel like a real conversation, not a clunky chatbot. Key highlights:

Self-Service Powerhouse: Businesses can customize the AI Agent with an easy-to-use design tool, no coding required. It integrates smoothly with backend systems for a tailored experience.
Industry Templates: New templates (coming soon) will make it faster to deploy AI Agents for specific industries, so businesses can hit the ground running.
ElevenLabs Partnership: Cisco teamed up with ElevenLabs to give the AI Agent a more natural, engaging voice, elevating the customer service game.
Testing Tools: Partnerships with Cekura, Coval, and Hamming ensure the AI Agent is reliable, with robust testing to catch any hiccups before they happen.

Cisco AI Assistant for Webex Suite

The Cisco AI Assistant got a major glow-up, tackling complex tasks with ease:

Jira Integration: Imagine wrapping up a meeting and having the AI automatically pull out action items, create Jira tickets, and even attach meeting recordings for context. It also keeps tickets updated with new info and deadlines.
Conversational Control: The AI Assistant now handles everything from troubleshooting network issues to optimizing performance, all through natural language. It’s like having a tech expert in your pocket, ready to jump into Webex meetings for support.

Webex Contact Center: Customer Experience Reimagined

The Webex Contact Center is getting smarter, with features designed to make agents’ lives easier and customers happier:

Real-Time Transcription (coming soon): Live calls get instant, accurate transcripts, with closed captioning right on the agent’s screen for better clarity.
Suggested Responses (Q3 2025): AI will offer real-time reply suggestions during chats or calls, helping agents respond faster and stay on point.
Mid-Call and Wrap-Up Summaries: AI sums up key points during and after calls, cutting down on post-call paperwork and ensuring smooth handoffs.
Topic Analytics: By analyzing call transcripts, the system pinpoints what’s driving customer interactions, helping contact centers fine-tune their approach.
Burnout Detection: AI spots signs of agent stress in real-time, nudging managers to offer breaks and support.
Customer Satisfaction Insights: Using survey data, call recordings, and metrics, AI generates CSAT scores for every call, giving a clear picture of customer happiness.
Webex Connect: This platform powers automated, proactive customer interactions. A cool demo, “Build a Guitar of the Future,” showed off its potential.

New Devices and Sustainability

Cisco didn’t skimp on hardware, rolling out devices that make meetings feel more connected and eco-friendly:

Room Vision PTZ and AI Receptionist: These AI-powered devices bring cinematic video quality and smarter remote participant views to meetings.
Cisco Room Bar BYOD: A sleek solution for small to medium rooms, letting you connect your laptop via USB-C for top-notch audio and video.
Desk Phone 9800 Series: Now with a deep sleep mode that slashes energy use by up to 81% when idle, plus better hot desking for shared workspaces.
Cisco Workspace Designer: A 3D tool to design large learning or community spaces with Cisco devices, complete with guided recommendations.
Webex for Apple Vision Pro: Meetings get immersive with spatial audio, personas, and natural controls using eyes, hands, and voice.

Developer and Partner Ecosystem

Cisco’s opening the door for developers and partners to build on Webex:

Partner Integration Studio: A self-serve platform to create, deploy, and monitor integrations on Webex Connect, making life easier for partners.
Webex App Hub: New integrations like BugFinder (for spotting Cisco product issues), C3 Payments (secure payment workflows), Calabrio Call Recording (for compliance), and Consilium UniCRM (for streamlined support) were showcased.
Developer Resources: The Webex for Developers portal offers tutorials, sample code, and live coding demos to simplify building integrations.

Webex Edge Connect

Teaming up with Megaport, Cisco introduced Webex Edge Connect, which moves voice and video traffic to a private network for smoother, more reliable calls with less jitter.

Event Vibes and Experiences

Cisco Live 2025 was more than just tech talk:

World of Solutions: The Webex Collaboration Booth and Future-Proof the Workplace Lounge gave hands-on demos of AI tools, the Webex Contact Center, and devices like the Cisco Board Pro G2.
Webex Exchange: A VIP event for connecting with Cisco’s collaboration leaders, sharing the AI roadmap, and ending with a concert by The Killers.
Learning Opportunities: Attendees dove into technical sessions, labs, and training, earning Cisco Continuing Education credits.

Big Picture

Cisco’s focus was clear: AI, digital resilience, and sustainability are at the heart of Webex’s future. With Webex Calling serving over 18 million users in 190+ markets and a 99.999% reliability SLA, it’s a powerhouse. New PSTN Trunking also makes it easier to connect on-premises systems like Cisco Unified Communications Manager to Webex Calling.

For more details, check out the Webex website (https://www.webex.com) or mark your calendar for WebexOne 2025 (September 28–October 1, San Diego) to see what’s next.

Note: Some features, like Real-Time Transcription, are still in the works, with rollouts planned for 2025 or 2026. Information comes from Cisco’s official channels, UC Today, and X posts, but always double-check with Cisco for the latest.

Network Solutions, Inc. (NSI), founded in 1989 is a Managed Services and Cisco Gold Provider with Cisco's Master Collaboration Specialization, demonstrating advanced competencies across Cisco's solutions, including networking, security, collaboration, and data center technologies. This designation reflects NSI's commitment to delivering reliable, high-quality services backed by Cisco’s latest technology and best practices, ensuring that customers receive expert guidance and support for their implementations.

To learn more about Network Solutions or our NSI ADVANCE Managed Services, including