An AI agent is software that uses a large language model to understand messages, respond in natural language and, when allowed, take actions such as looking up an order or booking an appointment.
How it differs from a chatbot
A traditional chatbot follows a fixed flow of buttons and questions. An AI agent understands free text, answers from your knowledge content and decides which tool to use. Many businesses use both: flows for structured tasks and agents for open questions.
What an agent needs
- Knowledge: your help pages, documents and FAQs.
- Instructions: its role, tone and topics to avoid.
- Tools: connections to your systems, such as orders or calendars.
- Handoff rules: when to pass to a person.
Where it runs
On chat channels such as WhatsApp, Instagram and your website, and on voice channels such as phone lines and WhatsApp calls.
Good practice
Start with a narrow scope, review conversations regularly, and make handoff to a human easy and fast.