Multi-Agent Systems Explained: A Complete Guide

Think of a team where everyone brings their own skills to the table — working independently but staying in sync to reach a common goal. That's the basic idea behind multi-agent systems (MAS). Instead of relying on a single AI to handle everything, MAS brings multiple AI agents together to collaborate and share information, which ultimately leads to smarter decisions.

This approach is transforming many industries. From optimising supply chains to managing autonomous vehicle fleets and enhancing financial trading, MAS can help you tackle challenges with both efficiency and adaptability. Below, we'll explore how multi-agent systems work and review best practices and benefits.

Before you can upgrade to multi-agent systems, it's helpful to take a step back and look at how single-agent systems work. Agents are a type of AI system that can understand and respond to customer enquiries without human intervention. Once they have gathered that information, these agents take action to achieve a specific goal.

Think of an agent that can manage incoming service requests and prioritise tasks based on urgency, taking action by updating records or scheduling follow-ups. Rather than following a script, it makes context-aware decisions using real-time data.

Whilst these agents are powerful, they don't interact with other agents to share insights and solve problems.

Instead of relying on a single AI to handle everything, multi-agent systems take a different approach: they use multiple intelligent agents that interact and collaborate to solve problems. These agents work within a shared environment, exchanging information and making collective decisions. The result is a more efficient system that can handle complicated tasks better than a single AI could.

A multi-agent system shares intelligence across multiple entities, rather than putting all decision-making power in one place. Each agent has its own goals and decision-making processes, but they work together — just like a colony of ants building a nest.

What makes MAS different from traditional agentic AI? It comes down to how agents interact — and how they unlock more intelligence together than they could alone. At higher levels of agentic maturity, systems begin to support teams of agents that work together and orchestrate outcomes across workflows.

Here's what defines a multi-agent system:

• Autonomy: Each agent operates independently within its own scope. It gathers and processes data, and then acts without needing to check in with a central authority.
• Coordination: Agents stay in sync. They share updates, pass off tasks, and adjust plans based on what the other agents are doing.
• Interoperability: A mature MAS supports standardised protocols such as A2A and MCP so agents can understand each other, even if they were built for different functions.
• Scalability: When you need to expand the system, you can simply add more agents. MAS architectures make it easier to grow without rewriting everything from scratch.
• Specialisation: Each agent is purpose-built. One might handle scheduling whilst another resolves support cases. Together, they form a coordinated network that can tackle bigger challenges.

These traits make MAS especially powerful in fast-changing environments where no single agent can go it alone. As agent ecosystems mature, MAS becomes the model for next-level AI orchestration.

The biggest difference between single-agent and multi-agent systems is how they make decisions. A single-agent system works alone. It gathers data, processes it, and then takes action based on its own rules. This setup works well for straightforward tasks like routing support tickets based on urgency, or drafting personalised customer emails

But some problems are too big for one system to handle alone. Instead of one agent working solo, MAS relies on a team that communicates, shares tasks, and adapts in real time.

MAS also scales better. A single-agent system can only handle so much data before slowing down, whilst MAS can add new agents as needed. That's why the next stage of agent development is pointing towards multi-agent coordination, where agents could eventually collaborate across domains such as customer support, scheduling, and order fulfilment. Of course, more agents mean more complexity, but with the right structure, MAS keeps everything running smoothly.

Multi-agent systems offer something single-agent setups can't: the ability to divide and conquer. By assigning specific roles to different agents, MAS can handle more complex tasks with more flexibility. Agents can pass information or take over where another left off.

That kind of coordination opens up possibilities for more responsive systems, especially as organisations aim to automate across domains.

One of the biggest strengths of multi-agent systems is how well they scale. Since each agent operates independently, new agents can be added without overloading the system. This makes MAS perfect for industries where demand fluctuates, such as logistics. Instead of redesigning the entire system every time new variables or tasks come into play, you can simply add more agents to share the workload.

Instead of solving every problem collaboratively, MAS lets you design a sequence where agents hand off tasks to one another. Say you land at the airport — your travel assistant agent might automatically prompt a rideshare agent to book a car. Each agent stays focussed on its area of expertise, but together they deliver a seamless experience.

The real world is unpredictable, but MAS agents can adjust their behaviour based on new information or even unexpected disruptions. In these industries, decisions need to be made quickly and conditions are always shifting.

In a multi-agent system, it's not enough for agents to simply operate side by side. They need to coordinate: passing tasks, sharing context, and working together toward a broader outcome. That coordination is what separates a loose group of tools from a fully functioning MAS.

As agent ecosystems mature, here's how that coordination plays out.

Each agent is designed for a specific purpose, such as answering product questions or initiating follow-ups. But when those agents can hand off tasks to one another, you unlock real orchestration. One agent finishes a task and passes the baton to the next, preserving context and momentum.

Imagine an onboarding sequence where a setup agent activates a service, then signals a welcome agent to send a personalised email, which in turn notifies a training agent to offer resources tailored to that user. Each agent works independently but in sync.

For agents to work well together, they need to retain and share relevant context. Without that, each interaction becomes a reset. As agent design progresses, systems are evolving to support memory, so agents can pick up where others left off and tailor their decisions accordingly.

This allows for more seamless experiences, where the “system” as a whole feels cohesive, even though it's powered by many distinct parts.

Agents can't coordinate without a shared way to exchange information. That's where interoperability protocols come in. They provide the structure agents need to communicate, share context, and pass off tasks smoothly.

Salesforce supports two key protocols designed for multi-agent coordination:

• Model Context Protocol (MCP) helps agents maintain awareness of the broader task. It ensures that context (like user intent, prior steps, or system state) can be passed along between agents.
• Agent-to-Agent (A2A) enables agents to send real-time updates or task requests to one another, so they can collaborate without relying on a central system.

These protocols make it easier to scale your agent network, allowing each agent to focus on its role whilst still contributing to a larger, connected experience.

Multi-agent systems hold a lot of promise, but realising that potential depends on one key factor: interoperability. For agents to work together, they need a shared way to communicate and hand off tasks that maintains context. Without that, each agent operates in a vacuum.

One of the biggest hurdles in MAS development today is the lack of consistent standards. Many agents are built using different frameworks, languages, or assumptions about how they should behave. That fragmentation makes it harder to plug agents into a shared ecosystem or chain them together effectively.

Protocols like MCP and A2A are helping solve this by creating a common foundation for agent interaction. But widespread adoption takes time. And it depends on developers building with interoperability in mind from the start.

As MAS becomes more mainstream, you can expect a stronger push towards standardisation. It's the only way to ensure agents can operate as part of a broader, coordinated system regardless of who built them.

You don't need to launch a fully orchestrated MAS on day one. Build up gradually, starting with individual agents and expanding coordination over time.

Here's how to move forward when MAS rolls out.

• Start small and focussed: Begin with agents that handle specific, repeatable tasks. Clear goals and tight scopes make agents easier to test and improve.
• Use shared protocols: Adopt interoperability standards early, like MCP and A2A. Even if you're not chaining agents yet, using common protocols sets you up for smoother orchestration later.
• Keep improving: As you expand your agent network, use feedback and analytics to refine behaviour. Agent ecosystems get smarter the more they learn and connect.

Each of these steps brings you closer to a multi-agent system, where intelligent agents work together to deliver faster, smarter outcomes.