HubSpot has introduced a network of autonomous AI agents: Agent.AI.
The network will host AI agents for marketing, sales, customer service, and operations teams.
With the platform, these teams may soon scope autonomous agents, add them to their Smart CRM, and implement them so they work side-by-side with staff.
Further down the line, HubSpot will also offer businesses an Agent Builder to devise, develop, and deploy custom Agents.
The announcement came during last week’s INBOUND 2024 event, where HubSpot also announced Breeze, a solution that embeds new AI capabilities across its CRM apps.
Excited by the prospect of Agent.AI, Dharmesh Shah, Co-Founder & CTO of HubSpot, told the crowd:
Agent.AI is the number one professional network for AI agents… it’s also the only professional network for AI agents.
“Some of you might be wondering: “Why do AI agents need their own professional network?” Reasonable question. I predict that in the future, teams will be hybrid—consisting of humans like you and AI agents.”
That prediction echoes Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff’s take on the future of CX, as he unveiled the Agentforce Platform last week.
HubSpot can reassure customers that it’s ready for the autonomous AI era, too, by making this announcement before Agent.AI is generally available.
However, despite the network not yet being ready for release, Shah promised HubSpot customers that they’ll be able to sign up for free and get 100 credits to start their AI Agent journey.
He also demonstrated some early examples of HubSpot’s AI Agents and how they’ll benefit CX teams.
3 Early Examples of HubSpot’s AI Agents
During his presentation, Shah shared how dozens of AI Agents are already in the works before spotlighting the following three.
1. The Conversion Rate Optimizer Agent (for Marketing)
“Today, the biggest challenge for marketers is generating traffic and qualified leads,” said Shah. “So, it’s crucial to convert the traffic we do have into leads, and the best way to do that is through conversion rate optimization (CRO).”
Traditionally, that involves a manual assessment of the company website, perhaps with some heatmap technology to visualize where customers click. Yet, overall, it’s a bulky process and a specialized skill.
However, the CRO Agent will – “with a few clicks” – make it easier, according to Shah.
“All you do is enter a webpage URL – your homepage, landing page, or pricing page – and the agent analyzes it,” he said.
Using decades of domain expertise, it offers suggestions, like changing phrasing, adding CTAs (Call To Actions), or improving imagery. It’s a simple but profitable Agent… try it out!
2. The Company Research Agent (for Selling)
Much of a sales rep’s time fixates on research. That typically involves scouring sites like Crunchbase, Google, YouTube, and social media pages.
To simplify that process, the Company Research Agent collects everything in one place.
“The agent pulls together a detailed multi-page report, broken into sections like founders, recent news, web traffic, and organic keywords,” noted Shah.
You can even ask research questions, like: “Does this company offer a subscription product?” The Agent will search the web and give you an answer.
Yet, perhaps the most exciting feature is the ability for employees to add custom questions for future reports, which the AI Agent will always answer.
Finally, the AI Agent can add a target company to HubSpot’s Smart CRM and track relevant announcements, such as new funding rounds or product launches.
3. The Customer Executive Briefing Agent (for “Delighting Customers”)
Interestingly, HubSpot’s AI Agents can work together, with one laying the foundation for another. Shah terms this “Agent Composition”, but it’s perhaps simpler to think of it like playing with Legos.
Showcasing how this works, he highlighted how the Company Research Agent (as above) can enable a Customer Executive Briefing Agent.
Indeed, a sales rep may use the Company Research Agent to gather information on a prospect before a call. The Executive Briefing Agent then compiles all the info into a handy guide.
The Executive Briefing Agent also delivers the guide as an audio file, so reps can listen to it on their commute.
HubSpot’s Vision: “There’s an Agent for That!”
In closing his presentation, Shah reiterated why HubSpot – a CRM company – is building an AI Agent Network. He stated:
The next-generation customer platform needs three things: a Smart CRM, AI-powered engagement apps, and an agent ecosystem.
The AI Agent Network is the final piece of HubSpot’s puzzle, and, while large enterprises may select an alternative AI platform, the CRM giant wants to make autonomous AI accessible for everyone.
“For those of you who just want to get growing with AI, HubSpot is here,” he affirmed.
“Since our founding 18 years ago, we’ve been inspired by Apple. Just as the iPhone and App Store changed the world, we believe the future will be shaped by AI agents.”
In this sense, AI Agents are the new apps, and while HubSpot is building out foundational Agents, Shah hopes that its partners and community will build many more.
If that’s the case, HubSpot can further establish itself as a platform company, which is likely the next step in its growth trajectory.
After all, consider the enterprise tech providers pulling in $10MN in annual recurring revenue (ARR): Microsoft, Oracle, Salesforce, SAP… these are all prominent platform companies.
In following this path, HubSpot can action its overarching vision, which Shah set out:
Our vision is this: There’s an agent for that—for every marketing, sales, and customer service use case imaginable, including the ones we haven’t thought of yet.
To engage more companies with this vision, HubSpot introduced a more attractive pricing model earlier this year, which removed the minimum seat requirement for its Sales and Service Hubs.
After, the company announced it had surpassed 100,000 customers and hit the $1BN in ARR milestone.
