Kore.ai is planning for significant international expansion in Australia and New Zealand following the company securing US$150 million in a funding round.  Based in Sydney Rilstone will be responsible for propelling the company’s ANZ presence and sales growth in the generative AI enterprise market. He will also lead the region’s partner strategy, addressing a growing market need for generating optimal conversational experiences among the region’s enterprises and public sector agencies.

According to Gartner, Generative AI will be embedded in 75% of Conversational AI offerings by 2026, up from five per cent in 2023, allowing opportunities for businesses to more easily deploy increasingly complex, multifunctional applications. 

Rilstone has more than 20 years’ experience in the IT industry, including more than 10 years’ experience in the customer contact centre market.  He joins Kore.ai from Amelia where he was previously a Senior Delivery Executive.  During his career, Rilstone has also worked for Telstra as a Head of Assisted Digital and at the Commonwealth Bank managing the company’s Virtual Assistant program. 

“Paul understands the unique challenges which customers in Australia and New Zealand face when it comes to putting AI to work to deliver end-to-end automation that drives business value, and he knows how to execute successful customer engagement,” said Sreeni Unnamatia Executive Vice President, Kore.ai.  “We look forward to the important role he will play in further establishing Kore.ai in empowering organisations with AI powered tools for greater productivity.”

Commenting on his appointment, Paul Rilstone added, “Kore.ai is one of the fastest growing AI companies globally and is reshaping the way companies harness the power of AI, simplifying and enhancing accessibility. Today’s dynamic business leaders in Australia and New Zealand are moving quickly toward an AI-first framework, making it critical to provide the best AI solutions to every employee. 

“I’m looking forward to working with our partners and customers and providing our no-code platform which provides for exceptional multichannel conversational experiences across Automation AI, Contact Centre AI and Search AI to deliver end-to-end automation that drive business value.”

To learn more about Kore.ai’s XO platform, please visit: https://kore.ai/platform/