Agentic AI Is Rising Fast, and SoundHound AI Might Be Better Positioned Than You Think

If you haven't already interacted with an artificial intelligence (AI) agent, chances are, your first encounter with one may come sooner than you think, thanks to SoundHound AI (NASDAQ: SOUN).

The company's agentic AI voice system, which is already in use at restaurant chains like Panda Express, IHOP, and Jersey Mike's, not only understands what customers are ordering, but also acts on those requests automatically. And its most recent earnings report shows demand is rising for its technology.

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Cost-saving technology

More companies want to sign deals with SoundHound AI because of how its technology can save them money. On its fourth-quarter 2025 earnings call last month, management noted that one of its clients, a telecommunications business, had shared that it had experienced a 20% decline in labor costs associated with billing disputes after it began using SoundHound AI's agents to analyze invoices and execute adjustments.

That's just one example, and more companies from a variety of industries want to put SoundHound AI's tech into action. The company said it inked more than 100 customer deals last quarter, including an eyewear and optical retailer that manages or operates over 700 stores across 40 states. It also signed a New York-based global financial services platform and an insurance asset management company headquartered in Germany.

SoundHound AI is not overly reliant on any single client, limiting the downside risk one customer could cause by leaving the company. Management said on the Q4 earnings call that no individual customer had contributed more than 10% of the company's revenue for either the quarter or the year.

Meanwhile, the rising demand showed up clearly in its results, with revenue climbing by 59% in Q4 2025 and 99% for the year.

It's still early

What I like most about SoundHound AI is that, with its voice AI system, it's an investable opportunity hiding in plain sight. Plenty of people may have interacted with its AI agents without even realizing that they can invest in the company that powers the technology behind them.

As more businesses begin utilizing this technology, that will create more press releases and proof points for the company to share. That, in turn, will make the opportunity for investors more obvious and make SoundHound AI less of an under-the-radar AI stock.

The challenge is that SoundHound AI still has to convince both potential customers and investors that its technology is a "need to have," not a "nice to have."

It will also have to convince more investors that it's a company worth owning. It's still unprofitable, and the stock's five-year returns of nearly 31% lag far behind the 77% returns of the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC).

Its current price-to-sales ratio of 23 is noticeably lower than it has been over the last several quarters, but it's still a high-risk investment. As such, SoundHound AI is only an appropriate holding for more aggressive investors, and if purchased, should only account for a small, speculative portion of their portfolios.

Jack Delaney has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends SoundHound AI. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.