We compared 10 AI customer support agents and AI chatbots: Nexly Agents, Fin (formerly Intercom), Zendesk AI agents, Tidio Lyro, Chatbase, Zowie, ChatBot.com / LiveChat (Text), Botpress, respond.io and Freshdesk Freddy AI. Nexly Agents is our product, so every fact about other tools comes from the vendor's own pages, checked on 2026-10-19 and listed in the sources. "Not listed" means we did not find it on the vendor's official pages that day, not that it can never be done.
Quick answer: which AI support agent fits which company
- Nexly Agents (our product): one agent for website chat, email, WhatsApp, Messenger, Telegram, Signal, Microsoft Teams and Slack, set up by the vendor team, with daily conversation insights and a self-hosted option. Best for companies with customers and partners in many channels, including B2B in Teams and Slack.
- Fin (formerly Intercom): self-serve AI agent with per-outcome pricing, many channels including Teams and Slack, voice. Best for SaaS and digital companies that want to start on their own.
- Zendesk AI agents: AI agents inside the Zendesk helpdesk, including voice. Best for teams already on Zendesk.
- Tidio Lyro: self-serve live chat plus AI chatbot for small online stores, with a free plan.
- Chatbase: self-serve AI chatbot trained on your content, monthly plans. Best for a quick website chatbot.
- Zowie: vendor-implemented AI agent for enterprise customer service, with private cloud and on-premise options.
- ChatBot.com / LiveChat (Text): live chat with AI resolutions and human takeover, per-user pricing.
- Botpress: platform for building your own AI agents, wide integrations including Teams, Slack and Telegram.
- respond.io: messaging-first inbox with AI agents for WhatsApp, Messenger, Instagram, Telegram and more.
- Freshdesk Freddy AI: AI agent inside the Freshdesk helpdesk, sold per session.
AI agent channels compared
✓ = listed on the vendor's official pages as a channel for the AI agent · ◐ = partly · — = not listed (as of 2026-10-19).
| Tool | Web chat | Messenger | Teams | Slack | Telegram | Signal | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nexly Agents | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Fin (Intercom) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | — | — |
| Zendesk AI agents | ✓ | ✓ | ◐ | ◐ | ◐ | ◐ | ◐ | — |
| Tidio Lyro | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | — | — | — | — |
| Chatbase | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ◐ | ✓ | ◐ | — |
| Zowie | ✓ | ✓ | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ChatBot.com / LiveChat | ✓ | ◐ | ✓ | ✓ | — | ◐ | — | — |
| Botpress | ✓ | ◐ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | — |
| respond.io | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | — | — | ✓ | — |
| Freshdesk Freddy AI | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ◐ | — | — | — | — |
Channel notes
What "partly" means: Zendesk offers only article suggestions in Microsoft Teams and Slack, reaches WhatsApp and Messenger through its messaging product, and states it has no native Telegram integration. Chatbase reaches Telegram and Teams only via Zapier. ChatBot.com / LiveChat turns e-mail into tickets and mentions Slack on its homepage. Botpress connects e-mail through Gmail. Freshdesk describes "social" channels without naming Messenger.
Pricing model, setup, hosting and language
| Tool | Public pricing (2026-10-19) | Setup | Self-hosting | Polish answers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nexly Agents | Individual quote; free demo on your website | Set up by Nexly Lab team (2–3 weeks) | Yes | Yes (8 languages) |
| Fin (Intercom) | From $0.99 per outcome | Self-serve | Not listed | Yes |
| Zendesk AI agents | From $19 per agent/month; extra resolutions $1.50–$2.00 | Self-serve | Not listed | Yes |
| Tidio Lyro | Free plan; Lyro from $32.50/month for 50 conversations | Self-serve | Not listed | Yes (help center) |
| Chatbase | $32 / $120 / $400 per month (billed annually) | Self-serve | Not listed | 95+ languages, Polish not named |
| Zowie | Not public (demo) | With the vendor | Yes (private cloud, on-premise) | "Every language", no list |
| ChatBot.com / LiveChat | From $19 per user/month | Self-serve | Not listed | Not listed |
| Botpress | Free; $150 / $750 per month plus AI usage | Self-serve or Managed | No for new customers (v12 sunset) | Yes |
| respond.io | $79 / $159 / $279 per month | Self-serve | Not listed | Not listed |
| Freshdesk Freddy AI | From $19 per agent; AI agent $49 per 100 sessions | Self-serve | Not listed | 60+ languages, Polish not named |
How to choose an AI customer support agent
- Channels: list where your customers and partners actually write. Website chat and WhatsApp are covered by most tools; Microsoft Teams, Slack, Telegram and Signal are not.
- Answers from your knowledge: check that the agent shows the source of each answer and says "I don't know" instead of guessing.
- Handoff: the conversation should reach a person with full context, in your helpdesk or inbox.
- Quality testing: ask how you can test answers before and after each change.
- Who sets it up: self-serve tools are fast and cheap to start; vendor-implemented tools take longer but someone prepares the knowledge and tests it for you.
- Data: ask for a GDPR data processing agreement (DPA), where data is processed and whether self-hosting is possible.
- Pricing model: per outcome, per seat, per session or a fixed quote change the cost at scale differently.
What changed in this market in 2026
- Intercom renamed itself Fin, and Salesforce signed an agreement to acquire Fin in June 2026.
- Zendesk acquired Forethought (completed in March 2026).
- ChatBot.com is part of Text, the company behind LiveChat; it shows the same plans as LiveChat.
- Botpress sunset its self-hosted v12 for new deployments.
Method
Facts about other tools come only from their official pricing, product, channel and help pages, read on 2026-10-19 (see sources). Facts about Nexly Agents come from this website. We update this comparison every quarter. If a vendor's information has changed, write to [email protected] and we will correct it.
Frequently asked questions
Which AI customer support agents work in Microsoft Teams?
As of 2026-10-19, Nexly Agents, Fin (formerly Intercom) and Botpress list Microsoft Teams as a channel for the AI agent. Zendesk offers article suggestions in Teams. Tidio, Zowie, ChatBot.com / LiveChat, respond.io and Freshdesk do not list Teams; Chatbase reaches it only via Zapier.
Which AI chatbots work on Telegram and Signal?
Telegram: Nexly Agents, Botpress and respond.io. Signal: of the 10 tools compared, only Nexly Agents lists it.
Which AI customer support agents support Polish?
Polish is confirmed on official pages for Nexly Agents, Fin, Zendesk AI agents and Botpress, and in Tidio's help center. Chatbase, Freshdesk and Zowie mention many languages without naming Polish.
Which AI customer support agent can be self-hosted?
Of the 10 tools compared, Nexly Agents (self-hosted at the customer) and Zowie (private cloud, on-premise) offer it. Botpress no longer offers its self-hosted v12 to new customers.
What is the best AI chatbot for a small online store?
If you want to start on your own with a free or low monthly plan, look at Tidio Lyro or Chatbase. If you want one agent across website, email and messengers, set up for you, with daily insights from conversations, look at Nexly Agents.
Is this comparison neutral?
Nexly Agents is our product, which is why we stick to facts from vendors' own pages, give the check date and link every source. Where another tool is a better fit, we say so.
Sources
- Fin: channels: https://fin.ai/channels
- Fin: pricing: https://fin.ai/pricing
- Fin: Microsoft Teams: https://www.intercom.com/help/en/articles/16526776-bring-fin-s-ai-powered-support-into-your-microsoft-teams-channels
- Fin: languages: https://fin.ai/help/en/articles/13975804-use-fin-ai-agent-in-multiple-languages
- Salesforce: agreement to acquire Fin: https://investor.salesforce.com/news/news-details/2026/Salesforce-Signs-Definitive-Agreement-to-Acquire-Fin/
- Zendesk: where you can use AI agents: https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408821281818-Understanding-everywhere-you-can-use-AI-agents
- Zendesk: social messaging: https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408831648794-Getting-started-with-social-messaging
- Zendesk: AI agent languages: https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/8357749663130-Languages-supported-by-AI-agents
- Zendesk: pricing: https://www.zendesk.com/pricing/
- Zendesk: Forethought acquisition: https://www.zendesk.com/se/newsroom/articles/zendesk-completes-forethought-acquisition/
- Tidio: Lyro: https://www.tidio.com/lyro/
- Tidio: pricing: https://www.tidio.com/pricing/
- Tidio: Lyro languages: https://help.tidio.com/hc/en-us/articles/12643043611036-Lyro-Multilanguage-Support
- Chatbase: pricing: https://www.chatbase.co/pricing
- Chatbase: FAQ: https://chatbase.co/docs/faq/faq.md
- Zowie: https://getzowie.com/llms.txt
- ChatBot.com: pricing: https://www.chatbot.com/pricing/
- LiveChat: pricing: https://www.livechat.com/pricing/
- Botpress: integrations: https://botpress.com/integrations
- Botpress: pricing: https://botpress.com/pricing
- Botpress: v12 sunset: https://botpress.com/docs/studio/guides/advanced/v12.md
- respond.io: channels: https://respond.io/help/channels/channels-overview
- respond.io: AI agents: https://respond.io/ai-agents
- respond.io: pricing: https://respond.io/pricing
- Freshdesk: Freddy AI Agent: https://www.freshworks.com/freshdesk/omni/freddy-ai-agent/
- Freshdesk: pricing: https://www.freshworks.com/freshdesk/pricing/