Sydney-based distie Unfold adds Talkdesk, Intercom

Sydney-based, AI-enabled distributor Unfold has launched with Talkdesk - a provider of cloud contact center solutions - as its first vendor in Australia, with a view to NZ expansion.

Unfold, specifically built for SaaS distribution, was established in August of last year, founded by James Cunial, the former group CTO of NEXTGEN; Luke Cunial, the former head of systems, group at NEXTGEN; and Elliot Campbell-Smith, the former head of platforms at NEXTGEN.

As Talkdesk continues to invest in a cloud-first partner strategy, Unfold will create a partner experience that encompasses onboarding through activation, enablement, pricing and ongoing growth.

Unfold will provide intelligent, conversational guidance across Talkdesk products, pricing, usage, and support; AI-assisted workflows to simplify complex, multi-stage pricing and quoting processes; and real-time product and commercial guidance built directly into partner workflows.

Unfold will also provide automation to streamline onboarding, deal support, and ongoing partner growth.

“Talkdesk is experiencing significant growth, and with that growth comes a responsibility to evolve how we support and scale our partner community,” said Srini Madhi, regional VP APAC channel at Talkdesk.

“We’re partnering with a distributor that shares our view of what exceptional experience means – where partners need speed, clarity, enablement and a frictionless experience to deliver modern customer experiences at scale.”

“Being selected as Talkdesk's distributor in Australia is a meaningful vote of confidence in our model," said James Cunial.

"We're here to help partners create an exceptional experience — for themselves and their customers — through intelligently guided enablement, presales and pricing.” 

The company also announced that it has been appointed Intercom's authorised distributor in Australia and New Zealand, expanding local partner access to Intercom's AI-first customer service platform and its Fin AI Agent.

The Fin AI Agent aims to resolve complex queries across voice, email, live chat, and social channels and is powered by the company's proprietary Fin AI Engine.

Intercom's partner program also enables service providers, consultants and resellers to deliver AI-powered customer service "transformations", with partners gaining access to the Intercom Suite — combining Fin AI Agent with a helpdesk — along with training, go-to-market support, and dedicated partner resources.

Intercom and Unfold will focus on helping partners package, sell, and deploy AI-first customer service in a way that is reliable and repeatable across industries.

Unfold will also help partners navigate AI adoption through access to guided presales, commercial workflows, and embedded enablement.

“Unfold brings an enablement-led distribution model that helps partners move quickly while doing the fundamentals well: positioning, pricing and economics, governance, and ongoing optimisation," said Keith Chan, head of APAC partnerships at Intercom.

"Together we'll support Australian and New Zealand partners to deliver measurable customer service outcomes with Fin.”

“Partners don't need more delays and SLAs from distributors; they need practical enablement and an easier path from opportunity to outcome," said James Cunial.

"We'll focus on making Intercom simpler to engage with commercially, easier to position, and easier to deliver - so partners can grow recurring services around AI-first customer service.”