New IT Service Platform Emerges from Dreamforce
Salesforce has launched Agentforce IT Service, a significant new product introduction at its annual Dreamforce conference that reportedly aims to transform IT service management through AI-driven automation. According to reports, the platform launches with more than 100 prebuilt connectors and integrations with major technology companies including CrowdStrike, Google, Microsoft and IBM, creating immediate implementation opportunities for Salesforce partners.
Partner Ecosystem Embraced for Implementation
Salesforce executives emphasized the critical role of their partner network in deploying the new ITSM solution. “We are embracing partners—large global SIs to regional partners to small partners—everybody that the customers are used to,” said Muddu Sudhakar, senior vice president and general manager for IT and human resources service at Salesforce. “Our team will be working with them jointly as we go winning one deal at a time.”
The company’s approach to IT service management appears strategically timed to leverage its extensive partner network, which reportedly includes approximately 12,000 partners worldwide according to company figures. This compares to approximately 2,200 partners for ServiceNow, according to data from CRN‘s 2025 Channel Chiefs report.
AI-Driven IT Service Management
Agentforce IT Service represents what analysts suggest is Salesforce’s organic investment in reimagining IT service processes rather than simply building another platform extension. The product aims to address what sources indicate is significant unfulfilled demand in the market for vendor platform consolidation in the information technology space.
“Traditional IT service management vendors have invested in forms, portals, bots and tickets for IT help desk teams, all interfaces and technologies that bog down teams,” said Kishan Chetan, Salesforce executive vice president and general manager for Service Cloud, during a press briefing. The report states that Agentforce instead provides support where workers already operate, including collaboration applications like Slack and Microsoft Teams, email platforms, and employee portals.
Competitive Positioning in ITSM Market
While Salesforce executives didn’t explicitly name ServiceNow during the main keynote, industry observers note the clear competitive positioning. During a September appearance on “The Logan Bartlett Show,” Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff acknowledged ServiceNow as “a great company” while pointing out differences in their customer bases.
According to the analysis, Salesforce’s entry into the ITSM space comes amid broader market trends toward platform consolidation and AI-driven automation. The company reportedly aims to leverage its existing Service Cloud expertise, which serves more than 60,000 of Salesforce’s 150,000 total customers.
Technical Capabilities and Features
Agentforce IT Service includes several advanced features that sources indicate could differentiate it in the market. The platform features an agentic configuration management database (CMDB) and service graph that provides a complete view of infrastructure, applications, services, connectivity and dependencies. The CMDB reportedly serves as a single source of truth for IT infrastructure, potentially preventing widespread downtime by identifying breaks and affected systems.
The product’s capabilities extend to both agent-enabled and agent-less discovery, along with a service map for proactive and reactive incident resolution. According to the report, the system can automatically determine employee eligibility for equipment refreshes based on profiles and company policies without human intervention, representing the type of automation innovations transforming IT operations.
Enterprise Response and Market Impact
Partners already working with Salesforce expressed optimism about the new platform. Megan Glasow, Salesforce practice managing director for solution provider Perficient, told CRN that Salesforce has been investing more resources into its partner ecosystem. “They’re bringing some diverse perspectives to the partner network within Salesforce,” she said. “That’s really valuable.”
The launch comes as major technology companies increasingly focus on AI ambitions and competitive positioning. Salesforce’s approach to ITSM appears designed to leverage its unified platform advantages, potentially avoiding data silos while delivering faster AI-driven auto-resolutions to IT problems.
Industry developments in the ITSM space continue to evolve as companies seek to address the approximately 20% of IT tickets that reportedly relate to security use cases, including identity and access management and account lockout. The report states that Agentforce IT Service will help with endpoint incident and performance management alongside these security applications, reflecting broader industry developments in comprehensive IT management solutions.
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