Salesforce AgentForce 360: New AI Platform for Agents

Salesforce Unveils Agentforce 360: The Next Generation of AI Agents

Salesforce revealed its newest iteration of its AI agent platform on Monday, aiming to attract businesses within a rapidly expanding AI software market.

Introducing Agentforce 360

The unveiling of the new platform, designated Agentforce 360, preceded the company’s annual Dreamforce customer conference, scheduled to begin on October 14th. This updated version of Agentforce incorporates enhanced methods for instructing AI agents via text, a dedicated platform for agent creation and deployment, and improved infrastructure for the messaging application Slack.

Agent Script: Enhanced AI Agent Prompting

A key feature of Agentforce 360 is its new AI agent prompting tool, Agent Script, slated for beta release in November. Agent Script empowers users to program their AI agents with greater adaptability and improved responsiveness to conditional scenarios.

This capability allows for the programming of AI agents to exhibit more predictable behavior, even in less structured interactions such as addressing customer inquiries.

Leveraging Advanced Reasoning Models

Users will gain access to “reasoning” models, designed to analyze before responding, rather than relying solely on pattern recognition.

These “reasoning” agents are powered by leading AI providers including Anthropic, OpenAI, and Google Gemini.

Agentforce Builder: A Unified Agent Development Environment

Salesforce also announced the release of Agentforce Builder, a new tool facilitating the building, testing, and deployment of AI agents from a single location.

This tool, also entering beta in November, includes Agentforce Vibes, a coding tool for enterprise-grade app development previously announced earlier this month.

Deeper Integration with Slack

A broader integration between Agentforce and Slack has been announced.

Salesforce’s core applications, including Agentforce Sales, IT, and HR, will be directly accessible within Slack starting this month, with further expansion planned through early 2026.

Slackbot Evolution: Towards Personalized AI Assistance

Slack is currently piloting an enhanced version of its Slackbot chatbot, designed to function as a more personalized AI agent.

This new iteration will learn user preferences and proactively offer insights and suggestions.

Slack as an Enterprise Search Solution

Salesforce envisions Slack evolving into a comprehensive enterprise search tool.

Plans are underway to launch connectors with platforms like Gmail, Outlook, and Dropbox in early 2026.

The Competitive Landscape of Enterprise AI

This latest update from Salesforce arrives during a pivotal moment for the enterprise AI market.

While companies continue to introduce AI features targeted at enterprise clients, many businesses are finding it challenging to demonstrate a tangible return on investment for these tools.

Competitor Activity: Google and Anthropic

Last week, Google unveiled Gemini Enterprise, a suite of tools – largely existing offerings – for building enterprise-grade AI agents, with early adopters including Figma, Klarna, and Virgin Voyages.

Anthropic is also gaining momentum with its enterprise product, Claude Enterprise.

The company recently secured a deal with consulting firm Deloitte to provide Claude to its 500,000 global employees – its largest enterprise agreement to date.

A strategic partnership with IBM was announced the following day.

Salesforce’s Market Position and Early Adoption

Salesforce claims that Agentforce currently serves 12,000 customers – a figure significantly exceeding that of its competitors, as stated in the Agentforce press release.

Initial pilot customers for the Agentforce 360 upgrades include Lennar, Adecco, and Pearson.

Challenges in Enterprise AI Implementation

Despite these advancements, a recent MIT study revealed that 95% of enterprise AI pilots fail to progress to full production.

This highlights the ongoing difficulty companies face in justifying investments in these AI technologies.