From Cloud to Agents: Is Salesforce Becoming "Agentforce"?

In a move that signals one of the most significant pivots in the history of enterprise software, Salesforce is reportedly considering a monumental rebranding to "Agentforce". This potential name change is more than just a marketing exercise; it represents a fundamental shift in the company's philosophy—moving away from the "Cloud" era and fully embracing the future of autonomous AI agents.

The End of the "Cloud" Era?

For over two decades, Salesforce has been synonymous with the cloud revolution. However, CEO Marc Benioff recently admitted that the term "cloud" no longer resonates with customers the way it once did. During recent focus groups and the Dreamforce conference, Benioff noted that clients are less interested in cloud infrastructure and more focused on "agentic interfaces"—AI systems capable of reasoning and taking action.

"I dropped the word 'cloud' totally," Benioff told Business Insider. "We learned in focus groups customers don’t talk about cloud anymore. They just want to talk about their agentic interface."

When asked about the rumors of renaming the entire company to "Agentforce," Benioff confirmed that such a change "would not shock" him, highlighting the company's aggressive commitment to this new technology.

Enter Agentforce: The Third Wave of AI

Salesforce’s new flagship platform, Agentforce, is designed to lead what the industry calls the "third wave" of artificial intelligence. Unlike the first wave (predictive AI) or the second wave (generative chatbots/copilots), Agentforce features autonomous agents.

These agents do not merely wait for prompts. They can:

Analyze data independently: Drawing from the Data Cloud to understand context.
Make decisions: Reasoning through complex workflows.
Take action: Executing tasks like resolving customer service tickets, qualifying sales leads, or managing inventory without human intervention.

Revolutionizing Commerce with AI Agents

The most tangible impact of this shift is arguably in the commerce sector. Salesforce is launching specific tools designed to transform how businesses sell online, effectively creating an era of "Agentic Commerce."

1. Autonomous Merchandising

New tools allow merchandising teams to delegate complex tasks to AI. For example, the "Agentic Boost & Bury" feature allows agents to autonomously manage product visibility in search results based on real-time inventory levels and strategic goals, optimizing revenue without constant manual adjustment.

2. The Guided Shopping Agent

Salesforce has introduced a Guided Shopping Agent for B2B and B2C storefronts. Unlike traditional search bars or basic chatbots, this agent acts as a digital concierge. It can understand natural language queries (e.g., "I need a hiking boot good for wet climates under $150") and guide the customer through the product discovery process, refining results and negotiating options much like a human sales associate would.

3. Always-On Order Support

In the post-purchase phase, agents can now handle intricate order management tasks. From rerouting shipments to handling complex returns or subscription amendments, these agents operate 24/7, drastically reducing the cost to serve while increasing customer satisfaction.

A Strategic All-In

Salesforce has already begun renaming its core products to align with this vision—Sales Cloud is becoming Agentforce Sales, and Service Cloud is transitioning to Agentforce Service.

While the corporate name change remains a possibility rather than a certainty, the message is clear: Salesforce believes the future belongs to autonomous agents. By betting everything on Agentforce, the company aims not just to provide tools for the future, but to define the very nature of how humans and AI collaborate in the enterprise.