Editing Software agent (section)

{{Short description|Computer program acting for a user}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2023}}
{{Multi-agent system}}
In [[computer science]], a '''software agent''' is a computer program that acts for a user or another program in a relationship of agency.

The term ''agent'' is derived from the [[Latin]] ''agere'' (to do): an agreement to act on one's behalf. Such "action on behalf of" implies the [[authority]] to decide which, if any, action is appropriate.<ref>{{cite journal
 | last1         = Nwana
 | first1        = H.&nbsp;S.
 | year          = 1996
 | title         = Software Agents: An Overview
 | volume        = 21
 | number        = 3
 | pages         = 205–244
 | journal       = Knowledge Engineering Review
 | doi=10.1017/s026988890000789x
 | citeseerx        = 10.1.1.50.660
 | s2cid = 7839197
 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book
 | last1         = Schermer
 | first1        = B.&nbsp;W.
 | year          = 2007
 | title         = Software agents, surveillance, and the right to privacy: A legislative framework for agent-enabled surveillance
 | volume        = 21
 | number        = 3
 | pages         = 140, 205–244
 | publisher     = Leiden University Press
 | format        = paperback
 | isbn          = 978-0-596-00712-6
 | access-date    = 2012-10-30
 | url           = https://openaccess.leidenuniv.nl/handle/1887/11951
 | hdl          = 1887/11951}}</ref> Some agents are colloquially known as ''[[Bot (disambiguation)|bots]]'', from ''[[robot]]''. They may be embodied, as when execution is paired with a robot body, or as [[software]] such as a chatbot executing on a [[computer]], such as a [[mobile device]], e.g. [[Siri]]. Software agents may be autonomous or work together with other agents or people. Software agents interacting with people (e.g. [[chatbots]], [[human-robot interaction]] environments) may possess human-like qualities such as [[natural language understanding]] and speech, personality or embody humanoid form (see [[Asimo]]).

Related and derived concepts include ''[[intelligent agent]]s'' (in particular exhibiting some aspects of [[artificial intelligence]], such as [[Automated reasoning|reasoning]]), ''[[autonomous agent]]s'' (capable of modifying the methods of achieving their objectives), ''distributed'' agents (being executed on physically distinct computers), ''[[Multi-agent system|multi-agent systems]]'' (distributed agents that work together to achieve an objective that could not be accomplished by a single agent acting alone), and ''[[mobile agent]]s'' (agents that can relocate their execution onto different processors).