AI customer-service automation at 1-10 employee scale clears net-positive only when 70% or more of weekly inquiries are repetitive, low-stakes, and factually resolvable (hours, pricing, simple status). Below 50% the trust-erosion and remediation cost exceeds the headcount saving; between 50% and 70%, the answer turns on whether responsiveness is the brand differentiator.

Editorial framework piece. Inquiry-mix break-even derived from observed SMB deployment outcomes 2025-2026 and platform docs (Intercom Fin, Zendesk Suite AI, HelpScout AI, Tidio, Crisp, Microsoft Copilot Studio). Status set to Partial at publication because the break-even is sensitive to two near-term shifts (judgment-boundary model improvements and per-resolution pricing trend) that are likely to move within the 45-day cadence.