How Does Agent Script Give Admins More Control?

Today on the Salesforce Admins Podcast, we talk to Joshua Birk, Senior Director of Admin Evangelism at Salesforce. Join us as we chat about how to get started with Agent Script and how it helps admins build better AI agents. You should subscribe for the full episode, but here are a few takeaways from our conversation with Joshua Birk. What is Agent Script? Big changes are coming to how admins build AI agents with Salesforce, and so I've brought Josh Birk on the pod to help us understand what's going on with the new Agentforce Builder. There are backend updates to the Atlas Reasoning Engine, but Agent Script is where the rubber meets the road for admins. It's a simple, high-level scripting language that lets you create complex instructions and actions for your agent to follow. Agent Script puts the human in the loop for all the little decisions an AI makes, helping you build more predictable and reliable agentic solutions. If you're comfortable with coding, you can pop open the hood with Script view, but there's also a visual Canvas view to help you see how things fit together and make the changes you want. And as always, you can just tell the Agentforce assistant what you want your agent to be able to do, and it'll list out suggestions for you to accept or decline. Why can't I copy my agents into the new Agent Builder? The biggest question most admins have about the new Agent Builder is why they can't just copy and paste their old agents into the new system. The answer is that the new version uses a completely different engine: hybrid reasoning. Josh uses the example of the transition to Lightning Web Components from Aura and Visualforce. LWC was created to align with modern web standards that simply didn't exist when these older frameworks were developed. The same principle applies to the new Agentforce Builder and the addition of Agent Script. The control that it gives you is a result of the hybrid reasoning engine it's built around. Don't panic, learn Agent Script Josh's biggest piece of advice is to take things slowly. The agents you've built in classic will still work fine, and just like with Visualforce, they're not going to be sunsetted anytime soon. "Salesforce does not like taking away people's toys," Josh says, "you don't need to be in a rush to go and recreate your existing agents in the new Agentforce Builder." Instead, try building new agents with Agent Script. It'll give you a better idea of just how much more control and reliability is possible. And once you've gotten your feet wet, you'll have a better idea of what you'll get when you update your existing agents. As Josh says, "Don't panic, learn Agent Script." There's more great stuff from my conversation with Josh about Agent Script and the new Agentforce Builder, so be sure to take a listen. And make sure you're subscribed to the Salesforce Admins Podcast so you never miss an episode. Podcast swag Salesforce Admins on the Trailhead Store Learn more Salesforce Admins Blog: Build With Confidence: Inside the New Agentforce Builder Admin Trailblazers Group Admin Trailblazers Community Group Social Josh on LinkedIn Salesforce Admins on LinkedIn Salesforce Admins on X Mike on Bluesky social Mike on Threads Mike on X Love our podcasts? Subscribe today or review us on iTunes! Full show transcript Mike Gerholdt: This week on the Salesforce Admins Podcast, if you've ever been wondering why you can't just copy and paste your old agents into the new version, this episode is for you. I'm joined by Josh Birk, who recently walked our admin relations team through what's really changing with Agent Builder and Agentforce. And more importantly, why it matters. We're going to unpack a little bit of hybrid reasoning, what determinism really means for admins, and how Agent Script gives you even more control without losing all of that magic. So with that, let's get Josh on the podcast. So Josh, welcome back to the podcast. Josh Birk: Thanks for having me, Mike. Mike Gerholdt: Well, we know that a few people are vibing now because of the dulcet tones of Josh Birk. So in all honesty, you were in a team meeting last week and you were kind of updating the team on stuff that's coming out for new products and beta products. And the biggest thing that you always explain is like, so why is this important? Josh Birk: Yeah. Mike Gerholdt: And of course, every now and then you end your little skit with, "Thanks for attending my TED Talk." Josh Birk: Yeah. Mike Gerholdt: And I remember last week's meeting, I was like, "Oh man, that's a podcast. I need to do that." Josh Birk: Yeah. Mike Gerholdt: Because the way that you would explained what was new with Agent Builder and Agentforce, I was just like, "Oh, that totally makes sense to me." So this is where we're at and this is what I was hoping we would talk about. Josh Birk: Yeah. And I'll have to try because I kind of remember getting into a very weird, almost like conspiracy theory level stream...