Logo

Tools (AI Agent)

Technical Capabilities
Letter: T

External functions, APIs, or services that AI agents can learn to call and use to complete tasks.

Detailed Definition

In the context of modern AI agents (especially LLM-based agents), 'tools' refer to external functions, APIs, services, or software that agents are given the ability to call and use. For example, an agent might learn to use a calculator tool for mathematical operations, use a search engine tool to find real-time information, or use a calendar API to schedule meetings. Granting agents the ability to use tools greatly expands their applicability and capability to solve complex problems, enabling them to go beyond the inherent knowledge and computational limitations of their core models. Tool use represents a key advancement in making AI agents more practical and capable of handling real-world tasks.