Meta Platforms Unveils New Business Artificial Intelligence Agent to Expand Enterprise Operations
- tech360.tv
- 5 hours ago
- 2 min read
Meta Platforms introduced an artificial intelligence agent designed to assist companies with daily operations, entering the enterprise artificial intelligence market.
The product allows the assistant to execute tasks for businesses, such as managing calendar appointments and securing sales.
The tool expands on current business messaging services and will be available globally to companies of all sizes.
More than 1 million businesses currently use older chatbot versions of the agents on WhatsApp and Messenger.
The new version will also be integrated into Instagram, competing with rivals like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Alphabet's Google.
Meta Head of Product Naomi Gleit stated that this is an enterprise play during an interview at the WhatsApp-focused Conversations conference in London.
Shares of Meta increased by more than 3% during morning trading following the announcement.
The Business Agent can handle customer inquiries, manage frequently asked questions, qualify leads, and escalate complex issues to human workers.
Companies can access the tool for free initially, though Meta plans to introduce paid subscription choices in the following months.
Gleit explained that the company intends for the tool to process payments, handle bookings, and place orders beyond traditional automated rules.
Meta is also introducing a Business Agent Platform to let corporations build custom artificial intelligence agents for other operational areas.
The platform integrates with hundreds of external systems including Shopify, Zendesk, and Shopee where the agents can deploy.
The platform provides larger corporations with enterprise-grade controls, guardrails, and measurement capabilities.
Gleit leads the expansion into new business lines through a new Enterprise Solutions team created during a recent company restructuring.
The team will deploy engineers to work directly with enterprise clients, building custom code and helping models deliver results.
The current focus remains on new business agents, but the team is also developing agentic tools for internal company functions.
Gleit is working to merge different Meta artificial intelligence tools, including internal workflow systems and user-facing support bots.
Small businesses prefer a single platform that handles all tasks, according to feedback received by Gleit.
Gleit acknowledged the risks of deeply integrating artificial intelligence agents into corporate systems and granting them permission to act.
Meta recently experienced lapses, including an incident where hackers manipulated a support chatbot to gain access to prominent Instagram accounts.
Gleit noted that the investigation revealed a flawed technical check within a separate underlying system rather than an error by the agent.
Meta Platforms introduced a new Business Agent to handle operations like bookings, payments, and sales.
The tool will roll out globally across WhatsApp, Messenger, and Instagram for businesses of all sizes.
A broader Business Agent Platform will connect with external systems such as Shopify, Zendesk, and Shopee.
Source: REUTERS
