Exploring agentic development

  • Release version: Australia
  • Updated March 12, 2026
  • 2 minutes to read
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    Summary of Exploring agentic development

    Agentic development on the ServiceNow AI Platform enables customers to build applications through a multi-turn conversational interface using plain language. This approach automatically generates complete applications including UI, logic, configuration, and tests, streamlining app creation without traditional coding efforts.

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    The core components supporting agentic development include Build Agent, ServiceNow Otto for Creator, integrated security and governance tools, and an enhanced developer experience designed to facilitate efficient, compliant app development.

    Key Features

    • Build Agent: Transforms plain language prompts into production-ready apps by managing UI design, database schemas, business logic, integrations, and testing. It also provides audit trails, security controls, and governance to meet enterprise compliance. Build Agent supports creating custom AI agents, workflows, or AI skills and integrates with ServiceNow Otto for Creator and App Engine.
    • ServiceNow Otto for Creator: Enhances agentic development by offering AI-powered developer tools directly within ServiceNow Studio and IDE. It generates server- and client-side JavaScript, converts complex scripts into readable documentation, suggests code optimizations, creates app scaffolding from natural language, and provides a chat-based conversational interface for building apps and querying data.
    • Security and Governance: Ensures enterprise standards and compliance through tools such as App Engine Management Center for lifecycle policy enforcement, AI Control Tower as the centralized governance hub for AI activities, Vault Console for sensitive data protection, and Machine Identity Console for API and AI agent authentication.
    • Enhanced Developer Experience: Build Agent is embedded across development environments including ServiceNow Studio and IDE. ServiceNow Fluent, a TypeScript-based declarative language, facilitates AI communication with ServiceNow metadata. Development can occur safely in sandboxes or Personal Development Instances (PDIs), with tools like ServiceNow SDK and Claude Code enabling local development. AI agents assist by analyzing and automatically fixing code issues.

    Intended Users

    Admins primarily utilize Build Agent and related tools to create applications via conversational interfaces, accelerating app delivery with minimal manual coding.

    Practical Benefits for ServiceNow Customers

    • Rapid app creation using natural language inputs, reducing development time and complexity.
    • Assured compliance and governance integrated throughout the app lifecycle.
    • Improved developer productivity with AI-assisted coding, debugging, and documentation.
    • Flexible development environments supporting safe testing and collaboration.

    Overall, agentic development empowers ServiceNow customers to efficiently build enterprise-grade, secure applications with AI-driven tools and governance integrated into their workflows.

    To build apps agentically on the ServiceNow AI Platform, you interact with tools through a multi-turn conversation interface to build apps, write documentation, or brainstorm ideas. Describe what you want in plain language, and the ServiceNow AI Platform generates complete applications including logic, UI, configuration, and tests.

    Agentic development overview

    The ServiceNow core offerings for agentic development include several products, such as Build Agent, ServiceNow Otto for Creator, built-in security and governance, and an enhanced developer experience.

    Figure 1. Agentic development and vibe coding vs. traditional development
    Differences between agentic development and traditional development

    Build Agent and agentic development

    Build Agent can do the following:
    • Convert plain language prompts into production-ready apps.
    • Handle UI design, database schema, business logic, integrations, and testing automatically.
    • Include audit trails, security controls, and governance for enterprise compliance.
    • Build a custom AI agent, agentic workflow, or AI skill for the ServiceNow AI Platform.
    • Integrates with ServiceNow Otto for Creator and App Engine for enterprise-grade workflows.

    ServiceNow Otto for Creator and using AI to build out apps

    While not exclusively an agentic development tool, ServiceNow Otto for Creator can do the following for agentic development:
    • Provide AI-powered developer tools embedded in ServiceNow Studio and ServiceNow IDE.
    • Generate JavaScript for server-side and client-side logic to enable text-to-code.
    • Convert complex scripts into human-readable explanations and documentation.
    • Suggest secure and efficient alternatives for code refactoring and optimization.
    • Create forms and app scaffolding from natural language prompts.
    • Provide a chat panel that offers a multi-turn conversational interface for building apps and querying data.

    Security and governance with agentic development

    Security and governance enforces enterprise standards for every app with built-in compliance, and includes the following:
    • App Engine Management Center enforces compliance with corporate policy through its lifecycle management tools.
    • AI Control Tower serves as the central governance hub for all AI activities across the enterprise, including agentic development workflows.
    • ServiceNow Vault Console enables you to discover and protect sensitive data across workflows.
    • Machine Identity Console helps you govern API connections and authenticate AI agents.
    For details on security and governance and agentic development, see Governance for agentic development.

    Enhanced developer experience

    An enhanced developer experience for agentic development is available in the following ways:
    • Build Agent is available in several development products, including ServiceNow Studio and the ServiceNow IDE.
    • ServiceNow Fluent is a declarative, TypeScript-based language designed specifically for ServiceNow metadata that enables AI to communicate effectively with the ServiceNow AI Platform.
    • Build agentically in your choice of development environments, such as:
      • An isolated sandbox using Developer Sandboxes, which enables safe spaces for testing and collaboration.
      • A Personal Development Instance (PDI), which is a non-production instance.
    • Tools like the ServiceNow SDK can work in conjunction with tools like Claude Code to interface with your ServiceNow instance when working locally.
    • AI agents can analyze and repair code issues through debugging and automated error-fixing.

    Agentic development users

    Table 1. Users for agentic development
    User Description
    Admin Admins can use Build Agent and other agentic development tools to generate an app using the conversational interface.

    What to explore next

    To learn more about agentic development on the ServiceNow AI Platform, see: