Cresta Launches Deputy Agent: an AI Agent That Keeps Working Long After the Customer Hangs Up

New long-running AI agent automates work across customer interactions and back-office operations, executing workflows across systems and teams for as long as it takes to get the job done.

SUNNYVALE, Calif., Oct. 13, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Cresta, the AI operating system for customer experience, today launched Deputy Agent, a long-running agent that automates the behind-the-scenes work it takes to serve the customer. Deputy handles operational workflows from start to finish to complete back-office processes and resolve customer requests, increasing speed and accuracy while reducing errors and costs.

From refund requests, to transaction disputes, to insurance claim appeals, many of the most important customer experience matters take days or weeks of work across systems and teams to resolve. Deputy Agent is purpose-built for these processes.

"Customers only see the work that happens during the conversation, but the results that matter to them are achieved behind the scenes," said Ping Wu, CEO of Cresta. "Deputy Agent takes on that work. It picks up where the conversation leaves off and carries each workflow through to completion, while human and AI agents move on to the next customer. For years, AI in customer experience centers has focused on the conversation. Deputy brings that same intelligence to everything that happens outside of it."

Too often, employees are left gathering information, chasing updates, and keeping processes moving. Deputy Agent takes on the work across conversations and in between, carrying context forward and gathering new information along the way. When work has to wait for documents or approval, Deputy preserves each workflow's progress, then picks up where it left off and continues until the job is complete.

What our customers have to say

"Aqua Finance's goal is to create an operation that's simpler, faster, and better," said Dan Greer, SVP of Servicing Operations for Aqua Finance. "With Deputy Agent, we see an opportunity to simplify refund processing, reduce manual work and costs, and bring more of that process in-house with greater visibility and control. For us, success is more than a faster transaction. It's a more predictable process and a better experience for our customers and employees."

"Sunbit is committed to delivering a better financial experience to every customer," said Katey May, VP of Customer Success at Sunbit. "Our customer care team is routinely recognized for its professionalism and positive impact on customer experience. Cresta already enables us to simplify workflows, so employees spend less time on templates and documentation and more time helping customers. What excites me about Deputy Agent is that it keeps our customer care team focused on resolving issues favorably, while further automating processes that don't require a human touch."

Built for the full scope of customer operations

Deputy brings together connected conversations, persistent work, and informed oversight to automate customer operations from start to finish.

• Orchestration across conversations and systems: Cresta supports human-led conversations through Agentic Assist and AI-led conversations through Cresta AI Agent. Deputy connects those conversations and the operational work that surrounds them. A workflow can start during a live call, come from a handoff, or begin when a document or request enters a back-office queue. It can span multiple conversations and the steps in between, or run without a customer interaction at all.
• See complex work through, however long it takes: Deputy is built to stay with a workflow until its goal is reached, whether that takes a few seconds or several weeks. It keeps track of what's done, what's missing, and what needs to happen next. When work has to wait for a document, a response, or approval, Deputy saves its progress and picks up when the information or decision arrives.
• Customer context guides the work: Deputy uses Cresta's real-time understanding of what customers are saying and trying to accomplish to recognize when a workflow should start and capture the details needed to act. It brings that information together with customer records, business rules, and standard operating procedures to determine what happens next. As new responses, documents, or decisions come in, Deputy builds on what it already knows and adjusts the next steps.
• Gain control and operational oversight: Teams can see which workflows are running, what step they're on, what actions have been taken, and where someone needs to step in. An audit trail records actions and approvals so teams can follow how a request was handled. If an integration between systems is broken, Deputy detects the disconnect and flags it so it can be fixed. The business decides what Deputy can do on its own, what needs approval, and who can intervene. When a decision is needed, Deputy brings together the case details, supporting evidence, and reason for review so the person doesn't have to search across systems.

Wu added: "The initial conversation is only the tip of the iceberg of customer experience work. With Deputy, enterprises can finally leverage AI to do everything that sits below the surface, across every team and system, and carry it through to completion."

Learn more about Deputy Agent.

About Cresta:
Cresta is the AI operating system for customer experience, where human and AI agents work together to power the entire customer lifecycle. Cresta automates conversations and back-office processes, augments human work, and puts insight into action, so each conversation makes the next one better. Companies like United Airlines, CVS Health, and Marriott use Cresta to turn every interaction into a competitive advantage. Learn more at Cresta.com.

SOURCE Cresta