This roundtable discussion kicks off the Cloud Wars Agentic AI Definition Series, which will analyze this fast-moving AI category. The series will also include podcasts, articles, and reports. I had the opportunity to host the roundtable with:
- Dorit Zilbershot, group vice president, AI experiences and innovation at ServiceNow
- Cloud Wars Founder Bob Evans
- Pipeline360 CEO and Cloud Wars analyst Tony Uphoff
- PriceSmart CIO and Cloud Wars analyst Wayne Sadin
Highlights
Agentic AI, Business Transformation, and ServiceNow (03:16)
Zilbershot positions agentic AI as enabling transformations that are redefining productivity across the enterprise. AI agents can operate independently and intelligently, unlike traditional AI systems that require clear instructions. ServiceNow delivers a full ecosystem for agentic AI, including search capabilities, reasoning, orchestration, and workflows.
AI Agents in the Enterprise (04:50)
AI agents are specialized systems that can learn, reason, make decisions, adapt, and collaborate. In so doing, they mimic human cognitive processes, “which allows them to think dynamically and be able to accomplish goals on their own,” she says. This can result in autonomous environments within an organization. AI agents can handle complex tasks by working together seamlessly, with an orchestrator ensuring smooth collaboration.
Agentic Drives Speed, Growth (12:00)
Evans discusses the need for speed and data-driven decisions in today’s fast-paced business environment and notes that agentic AI is ideally suited for businesses looking to move faster and make better decisions with data. He adds the cultural impact of agentic AI requires a top-down approach, starting with C-level executives.
ServiceNow and Orchestration (15:33)
ServiceNow’s Now platform connects every part of the organization, transforming AI from just another tool to an active player in enterprise workflows. ServiceNow helps customers start small with mundane tasks to build comfort and understanding of AI agents. The focus is on automating routine tasks to free up human resources for higher-level strategy and creativity. Orchestrator agents will be managing the agents, overseeing their work to “enable seamless collaboration across departments.”
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Growth Opportunities Trump Cost Savings (19:26)
Uphoff describes agentic AI as a revolutionary shift that redefines how technology integrates with business processes and a significant opportunity to reimagine workflows and business models, creating new revenue opportunities. Key takeaway: view agentic AI as a means to drive efficiency and growth, rather than just cost savings.
Zilbershot says to capitalize on this functionality, employees will need to know prompt engineering, will need emotional intelligence, and will need to understand their roles relative to agents. “All of us are really becoming a manager in the future…AI agents will be doing all the routine, repetitive, time-intensive tasks, while we as humans really focus on high-level strategy, creativity, problem solving.”
Agentic-Powered Decisions, Benefits of Partnerships (29:53)
Sadin compares agentic AI to robotic process automation, or RPA, but with a brain; it enhances decision-making and error handling. His company uses ServiceNow as an integration platform to connect various systems and improve workflows. He also notes the importance of partnerships among top vendors; in this case, ServiceNow’s partnership with Microsoft gives PriceSmart strong “optionality,” as does the modular, mix-and-match approach that ServiceNow utilizes.
ServiceNow Alliances With Microsoft, NVIDIA (40:44)
Zilbershot explains that partnerships are core to ServiceNow’s business model, creating a robust ecosystem. ServiceNow aims to be the hub for creating AI agents that can connect to various systems, enhancing enterprise AI capabilities. Partnerships with companies including Microsoft and NVIDIA are crucial for staying at the forefront of enterprise AI. Integration and collaboration are key to staying at the forefront. “We are the platform of all platforms, which means that partnerships are really at the core of our business, and having an ecosystem really plays a pivotal role in ServiceNow’s vision,” she says. “We have this very strong partnership with Microsoft, with NVIDIA as well, and we see that as really a core capability of the ServiceNow platform: being able to integrate and collaborate with all the different players to really ensure that we stay at the forefront of enterprise AI.”
