AI agent
An AI agent is software that uses AI to work toward a goal and finish tasks for a person, with some freedom to decide the steps itself. Google Cloud describes agents as able to reason, plan and remember, and calls AI assistants a less independent kind that suggests actions while the user decides.
Source: Google Cloud, What are AI agents? (updated April 2, 2026), checked October 29, 2026
What AI agent means for your business
The word covers a lot, from coding tools to customer service bots. The kind a business should think about is the one a buyer sends out to shop or book. Amazon, for one, says its Alexa for Shopping can add an item to your cart when the price drops to a level you set.
We'd picture an agent as a buyer who reads every word on your site and can't pick up the phone. If your price says "call for a quote," or your booking form wants a phone call to confirm, that's where we'd expect it to stall. So we'd hand agents the jobs your buyers would give them, like comparing two options or booking a time, and write down what happens.
Watching an agent try to book or buy from you shows where it gets stuck, and that's the first test we'd run.
Last reviewed October 29, 2026. All terms
How AI answers it today
On October 29, 2026, ChatGPT (no sources) and Google's AI Overview (IBM, Google Cloud, Reddit, YouTube) both gave the general meaning, software that plans and acts toward a goal. Both described agents you'd use yourself, not ones shopping at your business.
Our run through ChatGPT and Google's AI Overview, October 29, 2026. A sample, not what every buyer sees.
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