The messaging app Millions of office workers share memes and coordinate projects, which will evolve into something much more ambitious: a platform where AI agents work alongside humans as digital colleagues.

As part of Salesforce AI initiative published on Tuesday, Slack is evolving from a communication tool to what company officials call a "working operating system" — AI agents can attend your meetings, summarize your conversations, create presentations and even negotiate with AI agents on your behalf.

"We've become what we call a working operating system — we've been on a journey to simplify the complexity of all the systems you use every day," Slack CPO Rob Seaman, who oversees the company's AI integration, told VentureBeat. . "While communication and human interaction remain at the core, the system now enables automation and all the apps you need to do your job, as well as AI agents, which we believe will be key players in the workplace."

The new digital workplace: AI agents are your always-on colleagues

The transformation is already visible in companies like Accenturewhere customer managers are using AI agents in Slack to dramatically reduce time spent on administrative tasks. These agents can prepare for meetings, summarize discussions, and even draft proposals — all within the familiar Slack interface where employees spend their workday.

"In order for these AI agents to be widely used and continuously improved, it is critical to integrate them where people work," Seaman explained.

Inside Slack's Game-Changing AI Integration: What You Need to Know

Unlike traditional chatbots or AI assistants that require users to log into separate websites or apps, Slack's AI agents integrate directly into existing workflows. They appear in channels alongside their human counterparts and can be summoned through natural conversation.

The system is designed to be accessible to non-technical users. "There's really no code," Seaman said. "From an end-user perspective, there's really no technical work for you."

But the implications for workplace dynamics are profound. Demonstrations have shown that AI agents can independently schedule meetings, analyze documents, create visualizations, and even collaborate with other AI agents on complex tasks.

For example, during Tuesday's presentation, an AI agent helped an Accenture executive return from vacation to quickly complete client tasks, prepare for upcoming meetings, and draft a proposal.

Building Trust and Control: How Slack's AI Protects Your Data

Although Salesforce provides template agents for general business tasks, Seaman expects most organizations to tailor their AI agents to specific needs.

"We provide ready-to-use templates that will meet 80% of most needs, but we expect organizations to customize AI agents for specific purposes," he said. "We've already seen this pattern with Slack—companies adapt the platform to their needs."

The company has implemented extensive security measures in the system. "Agents act on your behalf without the permissions you have," Seaman explained. "They don't have God's permission or admin permission ... we don't create any loopholes for AI to see things it can't."

Human-AI Partnerships: Redefining Collaboration in the Workplace

For many employees, the prospect of AI colleagues raises concerns about job displacement. But Salesforce executives see it as an augmentation, not a replacement.

"It's not about handing over data," said Claire Cheng, vice president of machine learning and engineering at Salesforce. “It's about unlocking the full potential of data for processing Agentforce Deep understanding of your business and customer and empowering agents to take more effective action.

In the future, Salesforce envisions more complex collaboration between human and AI employees. Future versions will allow multiple AI agents to handle complex tasks, with specialized agents handling different aspects of projects.

“Now humans are creating all kinds of agents,” Silvio Savarese, who heads AI research at Salesforce, told VentureBeat. "The future will have an orchestration agent that will call up different specialized agents that will talk, work together, and complete tasks."

This vision of a workplace where humans and AI agents collaborate seamlessly through platforms like Slack represents a fundamental shift in how office work is done. While the full implications remain to be seen, one thing is clear: the office chat app you've been sharing cat GIFs with is about to get a lot more powerful.

"We're at the beginning of the beginning," said Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff. “When you're at the top of things, you see these little things and then you try to extrapolate what's going to happen. It's an amazing moment."