Transportation planning to expand its use of agentic AI capabilities

The Transportation Department is planning to deploy AI agents, according to a Thursday Salesforce announcement, making it the latest agency that’s signaled plans to use the technology.

The premise of agentic AI is that it goes a step beyond generative AI to take actions, although the term is used to describe systems with varying degrees of autonomy. As one Associated Press headline reads, “tech’s newest buzzword is a mix of marketing fluff and real promise.” 

How and when exactly Transportation will be using agentic AI isn’t clear. But the technology could help with complaints management, review grant applications for compliance or analyze complex weather and traffic datasets to generate real-time alerts or recommend mitigation strategies, the software company says.

“We needed to make a strategic shift to deliver on our mission: adding AI at the core of everything we’re doing,” the department’s chief information officer ...