What is an Agent?
An agent is a complete AI assistant configured with:- Start mode — Autonomous, Duckie Assistant, workflow, or runbook behavior
- Instructions — The agent’s role, scope, and decision rules
- Knowledge — Sources it can search for information
- Guidelines — Rules for communication style and tone
- Guardrails — Safety constraints and escalation rules
- Tools — Actions it can perform (respond, search, escalate, call APIs)
Agent Capabilities
Agents can:| Capability | Description |
|---|---|
| Respond to customers | Generate and send replies across Zendesk, Slack, Intercom, and more |
| Search knowledge | Find relevant information from your connected documentation |
| Follow procedures | Execute runbooks or workflows you define |
| Delegate to sub-agents | Call specialized agents for focused parts of a conversation |
| Take actions | Create tickets, update records, send messages, call APIs |
| Escalate | Hand off to humans when guardrails trigger |
| Classify | Tag conversations with categories and attributes |
Start Modes
Every agent has a start mode:| Mode | Best for | How it works |
|---|---|---|
| Autonomous | Open-ended support where the agent needs to choose what to research or do | Starts from agent instructions and decides which runbooks, workflows, knowledge, and tools to use |
| Duckie Assistant | Managing Duckie configuration through a copilot-style agent | Uses the autonomous runtime, but focuses on instructions and tools instead of support resources like runbooks, guidelines, guardrails, and classification |
| Workflow | Deterministic processes | Starts at a selected workflow and follows its nodes and branches |
| Runbook | One flexible procedure | Starts from a selected runbook and follows its instructions |
Autonomous Agents
Learn how to configure agents that decide which resources and tools to use at run time.
Duckie Assistant Agents
Learn how to configure Duckie copilots that work with Duckie objects.
Sub-Agents
Learn how autonomous agents and workflows can delegate work to other agents.
Agent Configuration
Knowledge Sources
Control what information the agent can access:- Leave knowledge tags empty to allow all connected and custom knowledge
- Use knowledge tags to narrow what’s searchable
- Mix connected sources with custom articles
Guidelines
Shape how the agent communicates:- Tone and voice (friendly, professional, casual)
- Response format and length
- Brand terminology and phrases
- Domain-specific instructions
Guardrails
Define safety boundaries:- Escalation rules — When to hand off to humans
- Restrictions — What the agent cannot do or say
Classification
Configure how conversations are tagged:- Categories (Billing, Technical Support, etc.)
- Custom attributes (Priority, Product Area, etc.)
Multiple Agents
You can create multiple agents for different purposes:| Strategy | Example |
|---|---|
| By team | Billing Agent, Technical Support Agent, Sales Agent |
| By channel | Slack Agent (casual), Zendesk Agent (formal) |
| By customer | Enterprise Agent (high-touch), Self-serve Agent |
| By product | Product A Agent, Product B Agent |
Agent vs Runbook vs Workflow
| Concept | What It Is | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Agent | The complete AI assistant with instructions, resources, tools, and deployment settings | ”Support Agent” |
| Autonomous mode | A start mode where the agent decides which resources and tools to use | ”Research the issue, read relevant runbooks, call tools as needed, then respond” |
| Duckie Assistant mode | A copilot start mode for working with Duckie objects | ”Update agent instructions, review workflows, and edit guidelines through MCP tools” |
| Runbook | Flexible instructions the agent follows | ”When a customer asks about refunds, verify their order, check eligibility, process or explain policy” |
| Workflow | Visual process with explicit steps and branches | Start → Check Order → Decision: Eligible? → Yes: Process Refund / No: Explain Policy |
Next Steps
Create an Agent
Step-by-step guide to your first agent
Agent Configuration
Deep dive into all settings
Autonomous Agents
Configure flexible agents for open-ended conversations
Duckie Assistant Agents
Configure Duckie copilots for working with Duckie objects
Sub-Agents
Delegate work to specialized agents
Workflows
Learn about visual workflows
Runbooks
Learn about flexible, AI-driven runbooks