ServiceNow says the key to implementing AI agents is making them ‘invisible’

Invisible AI agents: ServiceNow’s vision for seamless workplace integration: ServiceNow is advocating for a shift in how enterprises deploy AI agents, emphasizing the importance of making these tools work invisibly in the background to enhance employee acceptance and efficiency.

Key insights on AI agent implementation:

• Dorit Zilbershot, VP of AI and Innovation at ServiceNow, suggests that employees don’t need to be aware of AI agents working behind the scenes.
• The goal is for AI to function seamlessly, with employees acting as “managers” of AI agents without requiring direct interaction or specialized knowledge.
• ServiceNow’s AI agent platform, Now Assist, has become the company’s fastest-growing product, reflecting the increasing interest in AI agent technology.

The role of AI agents in the workplace:

• AI agents are designed to automate various workflows, from sales to product roadmaps, handling tasks such as encoding customer information and categorizing data.
• These agents are not meant to replace human employees but rather to alleviate busy work, allowing humans to focus on more complex tasks.
• ServiceNow CEO Bill McDermott emphasized that AI will be integrated into all of the company’s products, highlighting the technology’s growing importance.

Distinguishing agents from assistants:

• Zilbershot stresses the importance of understanding that AI agents are not assistants, a distinction crucial for setting appropriate user expectations.
• Referring to agents as assistants may create misconceptions about how users should interact with these tools, potentially leading to unnecessary complexity in their use.
• The ideal implementation involves agents working autonomously without requiring users to learn prompting techniques.

Managing AI agent ecosystems:

• As the number of AI agents grows within an organization, there’s a need for orchestrator agents to manage the expanding ecosystem.
• ServiceNow includes an orchestrator agent with its Now Assist platform to help manage multiple agents effectively.
• Other companies, such as Crew AI and Asana, are also offering platforms for enterprises to create and manage custom AI agents.

ServiceNow’s partnership with Nvidia:

• ServiceNow announced a collaboration with Nvidia to build off-the-shelf AI agents using Nvidia’s NIM Agent Blueprint.
• This partnership aims to accelerate the development of AI agents at scale, addressing the limitations of building agents independently.
• The first joint project will be a Vulnerability Analysis for Container Security AI Agent, scheduled for release in 2025.

Future outlook and industry trends:

• The adoption of AI agents in enterprises is growing, despite a slight overall decrease in generative AI deployment.
• ServiceNow’s approach of making AI agents “invisible” could potentially set a new standard for how organizations integrate AI into their workflows.
• The company’s focus on partnerships suggests a trend towards collaborative development of AI technologies in the enterprise software industry.

Broader implications: As AI agents become more prevalent in the workplace, the concept of “invisible AI” may reshape how employees interact with technology. This approach could lead to smoother adoption of AI tools and potentially increase productivity without causing significant disruption to existing work processes. However, it also raises questions about transparency and the need for employees to understand the AI systems influencing their work environment.