Beyond B2B and B2C: Preparing for the business-to-agents (B2A) era

2026-05-26 · Source: Thoughtworks Insights · Field: Business & Management — Corporate Strategy & Leadership, Operations & Process Management, Project & Product Management · Depth: Intermediate, medium

Summary

The concept of business-to-agents (B2A) is emerging as a new economic and operational layer, signifying AI's evolution from a productivity tool to an active interface mediating discovery, decision-making, and transactions. This shift requires organizations to design for intelligent agents that represent intent, compare alternatives, and execute actions, rather than solely for human buyers or traditional enterprises. While 39% of consumers are already comfortable delegating tasks like scheduling and shopping to agents, corporate readiness remains low. A Thoughtworks/IDC survey indicates only 12% of organizations have achieved a continuous, AI-driven operating model, with most hampered by fragmented legacy systems. The article posits that future competitive advantage will stem from building companies that are legible, interoperable, and actionable by agents, necessitating structural transformation beyond mere AI adoption.

Key takeaway

For CTOs and VPs of Engineering evaluating AI strategy, recognize that the B2A era demands a fundamental shift beyond isolated AI tools. Your focus must move from mere AI adoption to structural transformation, ensuring your enterprise is legible, interoperable, and actionable by agents. Prioritize investments in robust platforms, structured data products, and comprehensive governance to enable agent-mediated interactions, or risk losing competitive advantage in an increasingly automated market.

Key insights

The future of business involves a B2A layer where AI agents actively mediate transactions, requiring enterprises to become machine-readable and actionable.

Principles

• B2A introduces a new market layer, augmenting B2B/B2C interactions.
• Competitive advantage shifts to machine-readability and agent interpretability.
• Structural transformation, not just AI adoption, is key for B2A readiness.

Method

Prepare for B2A by overhauling legacy systems, building composable platforms with robust APIs, developing structured data products, implementing strong governance, and ensuring tight business-tech alignment.

In practice

• Design systems for agents to interpret goals and execute multi-step workflows.
• Prioritize structured, reliable, and semantically useful data products.
• Establish clear governance for agent autonomy, including audit trails.

Topics

• Business-to-Agents (B2A)
• AI Agents
• Enterprise Architecture
• Data Products
• API Economy
• AI Governance

Best for: Executive, AI Architect, AI Product Manager, Director of AI/ML, VP of Engineering/Data, CTO

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Editorial summary, takeaway, and curation by AIssential. Original article published by Thoughtworks Insights.