AI receptionist
A receptionist that knows who is calling before it says hello.
Zenith picks up the calls your team cannot get to, or every call if you prefer. It matches the caller against your own records, works out why they called, and either does the job (a booking, a change, an order status, an hours question) or puts them through to the right person with everything it learned already on screen.
One call
From the first ring to the note on the thread.
Every call follows the same path, whether it ends in a booking, a transfer or a voicemail.
- 01
Ring
The number dialed tells Zenith which location or line this is, and your hours tell it whether you are open.
- 02
Hello
The caller is matched by phone number against your customers, leads and open orders, and their profile loads before the greeting ends.
- 03
Why
The caller says what they need, or the line already implies it. Your rules decide which agent comes on to handle it.
- 04
The job
The agent books, changes, answers or qualifies, using only the tools and records that job needs.
- 05
After
A summary, any booking made and any follow-up text land on the caller's thread, where your team can see them.
On the line
Three parts on every call, each with one job.
The voice your callers hear is not the part that decides. Splitting the work this way keeps each part narrow, and keeps your records away from the voice model.
- The voice assistant
- Speaks and listens, under a name you choose (the default is Carina). It plays the recording notice and says it is an AI assistant, then follows guidance. It does not look anything up or decide anything on its own.
- Front desk
- Your company's inbound agent. It identifies the caller, loads their profile, picks which agent to bring on by your rules, and writes the record when the call ends.
- The contextual agent
- One at a time, brought on for this call's job: reservations, catering, order status, recalls or any agent you add. It sees only what that job needs.
- Your team
- Can listen, take over or receive a transfer at any point. A caller who asks for a person always reaches a person or a callback.
Your numbers
Keep your numbers and your carrier.
Zenith receives calls; it does not replace your phone service. You choose how calls reach it, and you can change your mind without changing your number.
Forward always
Your carrier forwards the main line to Zenith, which answers first and sends each call to an agent, a person or a department.
Forward when missed
Your team answers as it does today. Calls that ring out, hit a busy line or come in after hours go to Zenith.
Tracking numbers
Publish a Zenith number on your Google profile, website, an ad or a location page, so the number dialed tells Zenith where the caller came from.
Fixed rules
What the receptionist always does, on every call.
These are not settings. They hold for every company and every agent.
Says what it is
The assistant introduces itself as an AI assistant at the start of the call.
Plays the notice
On recorded calls, the recording notice plays before the conversation starts.
Checks before sharing
Order details, balances and appointments are shared only once the caller is matched or verified.
Reaches a person
Asking for a person, a manager or the owner always leads to a transfer or a booked callback.
On its own, and where it stops
Zenith handles the routine. Your people handle the rest.
On calls, Zenith answers, identifies the caller, books, changes bookings and handles routine questions on its own. Complaints, refund requests and anything outside your rules go to a person, with the call summary attached.
Zenith answers, routes, books and handles routine questions on its own. Refunds, discounts, complaints, low reviews and campaigns wait for a person, and anyone on your team can take over a conversation at any time.
Your dataThe voice model carries the spoken conversation and nothing else. Your customer records stay in your own database, read only by your own agents.
Start here, keep the foundation
Start with AI receptionist. Add the rest without starting over.
Start by forwarding the calls you miss. Zenith answers them, books what it can and texts back the callers who hang up. The customer records it connects for that first line are the same ones routing, scheduling and the shared inbox read later, so turning on the next function is configuration, not another integration.
FAQ
Questions, answered plainly.
What is an AI receptionist?
An AI receptionist answers a business's phone calls with a voice assistant that can hold a conversation, answer common questions, book appointments and transfer callers. Zenith's version also matches the caller against your own records, so it knows a regular from a new lead before it answers.
Do we need new phone numbers?
No. You keep your numbers and your carrier, and forward calls to a Zenith number, either always or only when your team cannot answer. You can also publish Zenith tracking numbers on specific sources, such as your Google profile or an ad, if you want to know where calls come from.
Will callers know they are talking to an AI?
Yes. The assistant says it is an AI assistant at the start of every call. That is a fixed rule, not a setting, and it applies to every company that uses Zenith.
Can we name the assistant and choose its voice?
Yes. Each company names its own assistant and picks its voice. Zenith ships with a default, Carina, which you can keep or replace.
What happens when a caller asks for a person?
They are transferred to the person or department your rules name, and that person sees who is calling and what was said so far. If nobody picks up, Zenith books a callback and puts it on the thread so it is not lost.
Does the voice model see our customer records?
No. The voice model carries the spoken conversation and nothing else. Your customer records stay in your own database and are read by your own agents, which pass the voice assistant only what it needs to say.
What can the receptionist not do?
It does not issue refunds, grant discounts beyond the limit you set, or settle complaints. Those are taken down in full and passed to a person. It also does not act as your phone system: desk phones, extensions and staff-to-staff calls stay with your carrier.
Related in Zenith
- Call routingEvery call sent by the line dialed, the time, who is calling and why.View
- Caller contextThe caller's orders, bookings, balance and last conversation on screen before hello.View
- Missed-call text-backA caller who hangs up gets a text that can book, answer or arrange a callback.View
- AI agentsFront desk plus one agent per job, brought on by your rules, one at a time.View
- Appointment schedulingAppointments and visits booked into your real calendar or system, confirmed and reminded.View
From Ferrata Labs
- Ferrata LabsThe firm that builds Zenith, and builds AI agents into operating businesses.
- The platformThe Brain: retrieval, models and audit inside your own environment.
- How it worksAssess, Anchor, a first agent live in under 90 days, then your team.
- Book a discovery callThirty minutes on one workflow, and an honest answer on where to start.
Start with AI receptionist, or talk it through first.
Thirty minutes with Ferrata Labs on how calls and messages reach you today. You leave with a view of where Zenith fits, and an honest answer if something else should come first.
Your menu, your policies, your routing and the way you talk to customers are yours. Zenith is configured to them. You are not fitting your front desk into a template.