3D - AI Avatar Attributes Impacting on Bank Customers’ Perceived Experience

This study focuses on explaining the attributes of AI Avatar that impact bank customers’ perceived service experience. This phenomenon is under-explored in empirical literature and thus calls for empirical investigation. It takes into account ten attributes and based on those, measures the customers’ perceived service experience towards the three groups of AI avatars. Based on the literature review, this study formulated nine hypotheses to explain the research gap. A quantitative methodology with a survey strategy was undertaken with an effective sample size of 150 Gen Z banking consumers. Furthermore, the study focused on the domestic banks in Sri Lanka. The analysis was carried out using SPSS-26 and Smart PLS 4 packages. Based on the results, it shows a significant and positive relationship between avatar attributes of likeability, credibility, attractiveness, pleasure emotions, dominance emotion, and arousal emotion with consumer preference. Moreover, it indicates that these attributes have a positive and significant impact on the buying intention and the electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM), which also have a significant and positive impact on consumer buying intention. These findings contribute to filling the existing knowledge gap and provide a novel insight.