AI Agent
A software entity that takes goal-directed actions autonomously, calling tools, retrieving data, and producing outcomes without step-by-step human guidance.
Quick answer
What is AI Agent?
A software entity that takes goal-directed actions autonomously, calling tools, retrieving data, and producing outcomes without step-by-step human guidance.
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An AI agent is software that pursues a goal autonomously — given an objective and a set of tools (APIs, databases, search), the agent plans the steps, executes them, observes the results, and replans. In a Salesforce context, an AI agent might take "Resolve this support case" as a goal and chain together knowledge-base lookups, customer-record updates, and a draft response.
Modern AI agents are powered by LLMs that handle the planning and reasoning loop. Frameworks like ReAct, AutoGPT, and Salesforce's own Atlas Reasoning Engine implement this pattern. Key distinctions vs. simpler AI: an agent decides *what to do next* rather than just producing text, it can call tools, and it can run for multiple steps until it reaches the goal (or a stopping condition).
Agents are most valuable for workflows with predictable goals but unpredictable paths — case routing, lead qualification, meeting prep. They're risky for high-stakes, ambiguous decisions where guardrails are essential.
Related terms
Browse all terms- Agentic AIAI systems that autonomously pursue goals using tool calls and multi-step reasoning — distinct from generative AI (which produces content) or predictive AI.
- Multi-Agent OrchestrationA pattern where multiple AI agents — each with specialized roles and tools — collaborate to complete a task, coordinated by an orchestrator agent or framework.
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