IKEA’s “Billie” AI Bot: How the company shifted call center workers to new roles

IKEA is leaning further into AI, but instead of cutting jobs, the furniture giant says it retooled its workforce—shifting thousands of call center employees into higher-touch customer roles as an AI bot takes on routine questions.

How IKEA’s AI rollout changed customer support

IKEA introduced its AI-powered customer service bot “Billie” in 2021. Since then, the bot has handled repeat, automatable requests—such as store opening times for the next location and updates on when an order will ship.

Rather than eliminating the employees who previously managed those tasks, IKEA retrained a large call center workforce. Over two years, 8,500 call center workers were upskilled so they could address more complex customer needs or move into sales-focused interior furnishings consulting.

That includes helping customers plan new kitchen layouts, advising on measurements and cutting for table tops, and assisting with finding specific items for a first apartment. The rationale is that human staff can provide empathy and nuanced questioning—especially when something goes wrong, like a customer struggling to assemble furniture, or when IKEA needs to understand what a space should feel like and what needs it should support.

Why the switch accelerated during COVID-19

One key driver behind the broader shift was the COVID-19 pandemic. IKEA relies heavily on large, walkthrough-style retail spaces, and that model struggled when stores were closed and in-person shopping wasn’t possible.

To adapt, IKEA expanded online sales and reorganized its customer support to match the new demand. The physical catalog distribution was reduced, and the company positioned the updated call center approach as part of its success story.

• IKEA says call centers became its fastest-growing sales channel over the last three years, with 15–20% year-over-year growth.
• IKEA reports internal customer satisfaction is now at 89%, up from 60% before “Billie” launched.

What this means for jobs—and what to watch next

Even with retraining, IKEA’s approach highlights a trade-off: the company claims that without AI, it would likely have needed to create additional roles—potentially training designers—to build out its online business. With the retraining path, those new positions may not have materialized in the same way.

Looking ahead, the main question for players and customers is how effectively IKEA can balance automation with human support as online shopping continues to grow—and whether similar retraining models spread to other retailers using AI customer service tools.