What is an AI agent?

Chatbot, automation and agent compared

A chatbot answers questions in a conversation. A traditional automation follows fixed rules: when a form arrives, copy it to the CRM. An AI agent combines both: it can read an unstructured email, work out what the customer wants, look up their order, draft a reply and update the record, choosing the steps based on the situation.

That flexibility is the point, and also the risk. An agent needs clear instructions, access only to the tools it needs, and rules for when to stop and ask a person.

Typical business agents

Lead follow-up agents that reply to new enquiries within minutes and book calls. Bookkeeping agents that read bills and receipts and file them. Research agents that build prospect lists from public signals. Support agents that resolve common questions and escalate the rest. Reporting agents that pull numbers from several systems and write the weekly summary.

ForceMX departments are built from agents like these, with human specialists reviewing their work.