Sinch co-founder Robert Gerstmann opened the discussion on the industry’s future direction. Subsequent sessions explored how one-way messages are evolving into continuous conversations across channels. Representatives from Parloa, Meta and Google also spoke. Alongside the presentations, partners had opportunities to share their experience.

One notable AI topic was the Model Context Protocol (MCP), which Sinch presented for its communication services. MCP connects an AI assistant to Sinch APIs, enabling it to carry out tasks such as sending a message, verifying a phone number or initiating a call. For businesses, this is a practical step from AI that only responds to AI that can perform a specific communication task. It also makes secure integration with business processes and oversight of these actions increasingly important.

The future of RCS was another prominent topic. Both Google and Sinch emphasise this channel as a way to provide richer, interactive communication directly within the messaging app, with a verified brand identity, images, buttons and the option to reply. For customers, this can make it easier to resolve a request without switching channels; for businesses, it calls for careful consideration of where RCS can deliver real value. We will explore both topics in more detail in upcoming articles.

Alongside the presentations, exchanging experience was an important part of the event. These discussions help relate new communication capabilities to customers’ real needs. Further progress will depend on reliable infrastructure, integration with business systems and well-designed processes, as well as the capabilities of AI.