AI deflection is the share of customer questions that an AI chatbot or agent closes without a person on your team getting involved.
The usual calculation is conversations closed by the AI divided by all conversations the AI touched, over the same period. The catch is what counts as closed. Some tools count a conversation as deflected if the customer simply stops replying, which can hide people who gave up and emailed again, or left a bad review.
A more honest check is to look at deflected conversations that came back within a few days, and at CSAT on the ones the AI handled. If either is poor, the deflection rate is flattering you.
Hobson does not chase a deflection number. It drafts a reply to every conversation and a person approves it, and a category only moves to auto-send once its drafts have a track record of being approved without changes to the facts. That way the share handled without a person grows from proven work, not from customers who gave up.