---
title: "Publish and activate an AI agent"
description: "Understand the separate publish and activation steps for an Interlinked AI agent, including readiness blockers and what customers see after launch."
section: "AI agent management"
url: https://interlinked-ai.com/en/resources/docs/publish-and-activate-an-agent
lang: en
lastUpdated: 2026-08-13
reviewedAt: 2026-08-13
---

# Publish and activate an AI agent

## Publishing and activation are different

Interlinked separates **publishing** from **activation** so you can review a configuration before it answers customers.

- **Publish** replaces the live configuration with the reviewed draft.
- **Activate** turns the agent on for its assigned customer channels.

Publishing does not automatically turn the agent on or off. Activation does not silently publish unrelated draft changes. Treat each action as a separate decision.

<div class="docs-callout docs-callout-warning">
  <p><strong>Important</strong></p>
  <p>If you only want to save a change for later, leave it as a draft. If you publish, the new configuration becomes the live configuration even if the agent remains paused.</p>
</div>

## Review and publish the draft

1. Open **My Agents** and choose the agent.
2. Review the readiness card and resolve required blockers.
3. If the page shows **Unpublished changes**, open the review tray.
4. Read the change list, then select **Review & Publish**.
5. Wait for the confirmation **Changes published to Live**.

The review list can include workflow, model, ability, integration, prompt, configuration, or governance changes. If you do not want to keep them, select **Discard Changes** and confirm when that action is available.

## Validate and activate

When the agent is not enabled, the agent page shows **Validate and launch**. If a blocker remains, the button changes to **Complete requirements** and opens the first item that needs attention.

When all required checks are complete:

1. Open the agent’s readiness summary.
2. Confirm that the agent is customer-facing and that the intended channel is assigned and active.
3. Select **Validate and launch**.
4. Wait for **Agent launched** and the confirmation that the validated version can respond on its assigned channels.

The agent card then shows the current status and the **On** switch. The first customer conversation can still depend on the channel’s own connection and messaging rules.

## What to verify before activation

Use this short checklist:

- The agent name and customer-facing description are correct.
- The intended workflow is selected.
- The correct channel is assigned to this agent and not another agent.
- Product, service, payment, and calendar settings match the customer journey.
- The response style, business knowledge, and governance checkpoints are reviewed.
- The readiness card has no required blockers.
- Your team knows how to use [manual control](/en/resources/docs/switch-between-ai-and-manual-control) when a person needs to take over.

Do not treat a successful publish message as proof that every customer channel is ready. Readiness and channel assignment are part of the activation decision.

## After activation

The agent responds on its assigned active channels using the live configuration. Monitor the first conversations in [CRM](/en/resources/docs/crm-overview), verify the customer experience, and use [Agent Notifications](/en/resources/docs/review-ai-activity-approvals-and-tasks) for approval requests or tasks that need a decision.

If you make another configuration change, the panel creates a new draft difference. The active agent keeps running until you publish again. See [What happens after you publish](/en/resources/docs/what-happens-after-you-publish) for live conversations and the 15-minute manual-control behavior.