Multi-agent AI to boost productivity - Salesforce

PHILIPPINE COMPANIES should adopt multi-agent artificial intelligence (AI) systems to boost productivity and create new jobs as workflows become more agent-driven, according to US-based software company Salesforce.

- By Beatriz Marie D. Cruz and Edg Adrian A. Eva Reporters

“There’s tremendous opportunity for entrepreneurs in the Philippines and everywhere to use this technology to think about how new jobs and new activities that we’ve never thought of can be created,” Mick Costigan, vice-president of the futures team at Salesforce, said in a video interview.

Multi-agent systems are multiple AI systems working together to perform tasks on behalf of a user or system.

“Since December, we've seen a really fast pace of improvement in the models underlying this,” Mr. Costigan said. “I think by next year you'll start to see this type of agent being [used more ].”

He cited Zurich-based recruitment company Adecco, which uses multi-agent systems to process resumes and match applicants with job opportunities.

“Quite a lot of the customers that we work with are actually finding these agents useful for doing a lot of that long tail of work that wasn’t done before,” he said.

About 89% of Philippine leaders said they’re confident in using agents as digital team members to expand their workforce capacity in the next 12 to 18 months, tech giant Microsoft said in its 2025 Work Trends Index report.

As AI agents become more proactive decision-makers, Mr. Costigan cited the emergence of a new leadership role — the agent-in-chief — which is an AI-powered system that serves as an executive assistant.