AI that answers. A person who stays in the loop.
When you're comparing us to an AI-only agency or a call-answering service, here's what to look at — and what to ask them.
Scroll the table sideways to compare all three.
| Criterion | MAE-AI | AI-only agency | Answering service |
|---|---|---|---|
| What happens when the AI is not sure | It gets a person — a transfer or a callback | Usually a best guess | A message, read later |
| Built from your business or a script | Your services, hours, area, emergency rules | Varies | A script you fill in |
| You can see every conversation | Yes — transcripts and outcomes in your dashboard | Sometimes | Call logs, usually |
| Who does the work after launch | The engineer who built it, monthly | Hand-off at launch | A call centre |
| Contract | Month-to-month, cancel anytime | Project fee, then varies | Annual agreements are common |
| What you own if you leave | Domain, site, content, data — all yours | Usually the code, sometimes not the platform | Nothing |
These are categories, not call-outs — every provider is different. Ask any vendor these six questions directly and get the answers in writing. That's what we'd do.
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Print it, save it as a PDF, or forward it — the same six questions, formatted to hand to whoever else is part of the decision.
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