Archive
Tag: AI Agents
Zendesk Acquires Local Measure to Strengthen AI Voice Capabilities, Expand AWS Partnership
Customer experience platform Zendesk has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Australia-based Contact Center as a Service (CCaaS) firm Local Measure. Citing pending regulatory approval, the deal’s financial terms were not disclosed—it’s been reported to be $100 million—, but both companies expect the deal to close in May 2025. The move aims to bolster […]
IT Leaders Bet on AI Agents to Ease Growing Workloads, But Integration Remains a Major Hurdle
Companies are embracing the artificial intelligence revolution, turning to AI agents to help them scale for the future. That’s good news for enterprise agentic platform providers like Salesforce, Zendesk, and ServiceNow and startups like Cognition Labs, Adept AI, and LangChain. However, while there’s tech adoption, it’s not being smartly executed. New research from MuleSoft, Venson […]
CES 2025: Now With More AI
IN THIS ISSUE: Welcome to the final newsletter of 2024. Thank you for subscribing to and reading “The AI Economy.” Next month marks one year since I launched this publication, and I appreciate the reception it has received. In the coming year, expect more stories about AI’s impact on business, work, technology, and society. Regarding […]
Salesforce Unveils Agentforce 2.0, Bringing AI Agents to Slack and Introducing Advanced Atlas Reasoning
As AI agents take center stage in 2024, Salesforce is fully leaning into the trend. In October, the cloud computing company launched Agentforce, a platform that lets anyone quickly build advanced AI bots and connect them to enterprise data. Two months later, it’s introducing its next-generation AI agent offering, which aims to redefine “AI agents across […]
Proto Hologram’s Holographic AI Avatars: ‘A Chatbot in a Fancy Dress, but With a Persona Presence’
I wanted to check out one company in particular while attending Amazon Web Services’ re:Invent conference. It came to my attention days prior while perusing LinkedIn, and I became curious about its technology. However, I ignored where exactly I could find it at the show. It turns out that the company, Proto Hologram, wasn’t hard […]
AWS Introduces Amazon Q Developer Agents for Automated Testing, Documentation, and Code Reviews
Amazon Web Services (AWS) has unveiled a slate of enhancements for Amazon Q, its generative AI coding assistant. Announced at this year’s re:Invent conference, the company is launching several new features to make it easier for developers to innovate. Starting today, Q Developer has a built-in agent to automate the end-to-end process of generating and […]
Salesforce Emphasizes Bench Strength as it Navigates Agentforce Future Amid Key AI Executive Departure
Clara Shih stepped onto the stage in a room with tens of thousands of people and many more online watching. Introduced by Salesforce Chief Executive Marc Benioff, Shih would showcase the company’s most significant product releases in years. As the head of Salesforce AI, she made the case for why organizations want to use the […]
From Tool to Teammate: The Five Stages of AI’s Role in the Workplace
Multiple studies have shown how business leaders struggle to find value with artificial intelligence, but a new study offers an alternative perspective: the workers. Research from Atlassian’s Teamwork Lab reveals that employees who elect to use AI not as a tool but as an expert advisor are finding the most success. It outlines five distinct […]
Stripe Releases SDK Enabling Payment and Billing Capabilities for AI Agents
Stripe has introduced a new software development kit (SDK) to integrate its financial technology seamlessly into AI-driven workflows. With the Stripe agent toolkit, bots will be able to engage in monetary transactions, helping to earn and spend funds, provide troubleshooting, and provide bills for usage with metered billing. The new SDK supports AI agents built […]
Zendesk Unveils AI Dynamic Pricing Plan to Make Service Automation More Flexible
Zendesk is introducing a new pricing structure for customers looking for greater flexibility when using the customer experience platform’s artificial intelligence tools. With “AI Dynamic Pricing,” companies can shift how they allocate their budget between agent seats and automated resolutions. Any adjustments can be made seamlessly without needing to renegotiate contracts with Zendesk. In August, […]