TIO agents vs an inbox AI layer
An inbox AI layer makes email easier to read. It typically leaves the tagging and the structuring to your team and does not write to your TMS. TIO agents read the email and create the record in your TMS. Each action has its own setting: it runs on its own, goes for review, or waits for a person’s reply.
| Inbox assistant | TIO agent | |
|---|---|---|
| Reads the email | Yes | Yes |
| Enters the record | Your team | The agent, under your rules |
| An exception | Your team finds it | Sent to a person |
A tagged inbox is still an inbox.
An assistant on top of email speeds up reading, but a person typically still applies the tags, maintains the rules, and then re-keys the job into the TMS. TIO agents extract the data, tie it to the job, and create the record in your TMS through an adapter built for it. Each action has its own setting. It runs on its own, goes to your team for review, or waits for a person’s reply. An agent drafts a customs filing and a person files it.
The inbox-layer way and the agent way
An inbox AI layer
A tag-driven email client with an assistant on top. It is organized around tags your team applies and maintains by hand. It speeds up reading, but the structuring stays manual and ongoing. Its output typically stays in the inbox, not in your TMS.
With TIO agents
An agent extracts the data and ties it to the job, with no manual tagging to maintain. It creates the record in your TMS through an adapter built for your TMS. Adapters are in production for two TMS platforms. Each action has its own setting: it runs on its own, goes to your team for review, or waits for a person’s reply.
Four places the difference shows up
How it organizes
An inbox layer runs on tags and rules your team keeps up by hand. TIO agents extract the data and tie it to the job.
What it does
An inbox layer triages and drafts inside email. TIO agents carry the job through to the TMS.
System of record
An inbox layer typically keeps the work in email. TIO creates the record in your TMS through an adapter built for it, and your TMS stays the system of record.
Customs filings
An inbox layer drafts email, not filing data. A TIO agent prepares a customs filing as a draft, and a person files it.
With a typical inbox layer, someone still applies the tags, maintains the rules, and then re-types the job. TIO agents extract the data and create the record in your TMS. Anything outside your rules goes to a person, and a person files every customs filing.
Where the work happens.
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