The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is increasing its use of artificial intelligence tools following significant staffing reductions earlier this year.

According to FOX Business, the agency is preparing to deploy Salesforce-powered AI agents across several divisions. The move is part of a broader effort to update long-standing internal systems after workforce cuts that eliminated roughly 12,000 staff.

The technology, developed through Salesforce’s Agentforce program, is designed to help employees manage customer requests.

Paul Tatum, executive vice president of global public sector solutions at Salesforce, said the system operates with strict limits and cannot make final decisions or distribute funds. He described the software as a tool that assists with tasks such as locating information, generating summaries, and supporting customer interactions, according to FOX Business.

Tatum noted that the program is designed to reduce delays and alleviate workloads in areas where backlogs frequently occur. The IRS Salesforce AI agents are expected to take on time-consuming administrative tasks while IRS staff continue to oversee final reviews and actions.

Rob Fitzpatrick, senior counsel in the IRS Office of Chief Counsel, told Axios that the agency began modernizing its technology infrastructure in 2023. He said the shift toward AI aligns with updates happening across other government institutions and added that the recent layoffs likely resulted from several contributing factors.

According to FOX Business, this year’s restructuring also included the closure of the IRS’s Office of Civil Rights and Compliance, which managed discrimination protections, audits, and investigations. Remaining employees from that office were reassigned to other roles.

IRS workforce numbers have changed significantly in recent years. At the start of President Trump’s second term, the agency employed roughly 100,000 people, Fox Business reports. About 12,000 left during his first three months in office, around 7,000 of whom were dismissed during probation and another 5,000 of whom resigned, per the outlet. Those declines followed earlier growth under the Biden administration, which added approximately 20,000 employees to support tax collection efforts.

The rollout of Salesforce AI agents marks the IRS’s newest move to adjust to workforce changes. The IRS has not issued public comments regarding the program, and Salesforce has not shared additional details beyond confirming the system’s guardrails and human oversight requirements.