As artificial intelligence reshapes customer interactions across industries, business leaders are racing to explore how organizations can harness technology without losing the trust that underpins customer relationships.

This concern sat at the heart of Exotel EngageX 2026, presented by Forbes India and CNBC-TV18. Bringing together leaders from banking, insurance, aviation, logistics, retail, technology, and digital-native businesses, the event explored how customer experience is evolving from a support function into a strategic driver of growth, loyalty, and enterprise value.

The evening opened with a discussion aptly titled Trust is Not a Brand Attribute, It's an Economic Asset. Moderated by CNBC-TV18's Latha Venkatesh, the conversation brought together leaders from the BFSI sector and Exotel, the leader in AI-led customer experience solutions and cloud communications for enterprises.

During the discussion, Shivakumar Ganesan, Co-founder and CEO of Exotel, emphasized, "Technology certainly helps, but ultimately, it must help humans." Tarun Chugh, MD & CEO of Bajaj Life, described trust as a "ledger" built through every customer interaction, while Dhiraj Relli of HDFC Securities argued that reliability and availability remain the foundations of trust in a digital-first world. Alok Aggarwal of Muthoot Homefin distilled trust-building into a simple formula: commit, deliver, and........

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