Optus CEO Stephen Rue has said that artificial intelligence (AI) will transform the telecoms industry, but not at the expense of humans.

In an interview with The Guardian, Rue said that humans remain pivotal to Optus' future plans.

"One of the things we need to do in terms of IT and data and, indeed, process redesign is to look at how we incorporate AI into that [telecoms],” Rue told the newspaper.

As many telcos have pointed out in the past couple of years, Rue said he expects AI to help improve customer service, such as identifying any faults that their customers may encounter.

But despite the industry's excitement for AI and the efficiencies it can potentially deliver, Rue is adamant humans will always have a key role to play in telecoms.

“On top of AI, there’s clearly decisions that would need to be taken by humans,” said Rue. “AI can help bring a lot of data analytics quickly to humans so they can make better decisions.

“For example, you’ll always need technicians in the field. You always need people building, you’ll always need people making decisions around creative, people making decisions in call centers for customers, so AI can actually supplement that.”

Rue has only been CEO of Optus since November, taking over following the resignation of Kelly Bayer in November after a network outage, which left more than ten million Australians without Internet.

He was previously CEO of Australia’s National Broadband Network (NBN) for six years.

Telstra expects to cut jobs as part of AI drive

Elsewhere in Australia, rival telco Telstra delivered a very different message around AI, noting that it expects to shrink its workforce as it pushes hard on AI efficiencies.

In a call with investors, Telstra said it plans to cut its headcount by 2030.

The company's CEO, Vicki Brady, said AI "will be a significant unlock when it comes to enabling our workforce."

Brady said the company will embrace AI in the coming years, cautioning that jobs will be lost along the way, though he didn't provide an exact number.