Explore AI agents

  • Release version: Zurich
  • Updated July 21, 2026
  • 3 minutes to read

    • Learn how AI agents enhance live agent productivity by mimicking human-like intelligence to manage tasks ranging from automated responses to complex problem solving.

    AI agents overview

    AI agents are virtual agents within the ServiceNow AI Platform ecosystem. They can perform specific tasks and functions, often using natural language instead of traditional code.

    AI agents can perform the following tasks:
    • Analyze data.
    • Retrieve information from knowledge bases and enterprise systems.
    • Execute automated actions.
    • Collaborate with other agents to resolve issues or accomplish requests.
    Example: Imagine you need to reset your password. Multiple AI agents might be involved:
    1. One agent understands the request.
    2. Another verifies your account details.
    3. A third agent conducts a security check.
    4. A fourth agent resets the password and notifies you.

    Agentic AI framework

    AI Agent Studio overview
    The AI Agent Studio enables you to create, manage, and test AI agents and agentic workflows in a unified environment.
    agentic system
    The ServiceNow AI Platform's agentic system uses AI agents, orchestrated by an Orchestrator, to execute Agentic workflows.
    AI agents
    On the ServiceNow AI Platform agentic system, an AI agent contains a set of large language model (LLM) instructions with the tools to accomplish tasks.
    agentic workflow
    Agentic workflows are smart, context-aware, automated processes designed and executed by AI agents. They represent dynamic, human-like processes where specialized AI agents collaborate to accomplish complex goals. Here are a few key characteristics of Agentic workflows:
    • Autonomous: Operate independently without constant human intervention.
    • Adaptive: Adjust to changing situations and business needs.
    • Collaborative: Work together to complete complex tasks.
    • Intelligent: Use large language models and business data to make informed decisions.
    Orchestrator
    The AI agent Orchestrator is a central management system that coordinates AI agents to ensure they collaborate effectively to complete complex workflows.

    For more information, see Understand AI agents.

    Guided Setup
    The guided setup process in the helps you configure your AI Agent triggers, data sources, and display locations based on your specific business needs.
    ServiceNow Otto panel
    The ServiceNow Otto panel is a user-facing interface, commonly accessed through the context menu or chat interfaces. It provides quick access to agents' capabilities and enhances productivity by summarizing records, creating content, and analyzing alerts.
    Tools
    Tools equip your AI agents with the necessary capabilities to complete their tasks. Adding a tool to an AI agent enables various functionalities and helps the AI agents achieve their objectives.

    How to put AI agents to work

    AI agents can use a variety of tools, such as web searches, record operations, and flows, to work on agentic workflows that you define.

    Navigate to All > AI Agent Studio > Overview > Get an overview of what to expect and select View steps to see how you can successfully put your AI agents to work.

    1. Create an agentic workflow: agentic workflows define the problem and situation that you want your AI agents to work on. Without an agentic workflow, your agents don’t know when or what to work on.
    2. Create AI agents: AI agents use tools to execute tasks. Consider the tasks needed to solve the agentic workflow you created. Create one or more agents to execute those tasks.
    3. Test the agentic workflow: See how your AI agents perform. Make adjustments to either the agentic workflow or AI agents. Test until everything’s working the way you want.
    4. Deploy: Put your AI agents to work across your organization.

    AI agents configuration and execution

    Workflow describing the configuration of AI agents and how they work to execute an agentic workflow.

    AI Agent Studio lets you configure two agentic AI solutions: AI agents and agentic workflows. By using Guided Setup in AI Agent Studio, you create AI agents and workflows, add tools or define triggers, and define the availability or display location. After they're created, you can duplicate, modify, and test them in AI Agent Studio.

    In run time, triggers in the primary and secondary interfaces cause agentic workflow execution, where one or more AI agents execute the plan with the help of the AI agent Orchestrator to accomplish the task. After agentic workflow execution, the output appears in the ServiceNow Otto panel. To learn more about an AI agent Orchestrator is, see the Understand AI agents.