> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.poly.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Agents API

> Build, configure, and deploy PolyAI agents programmatically. Manage agents, branches, knowledge bases, telephony, and deployments from your own systems.

The Agents API is a set of REST endpoints for building and shipping PolyAI agents without the UI. It covers the full agent lifecycle: create the agent, branch for parallel work, edit behavior and knowledge, provision telephony, publish through environments, and tweak runtime values after launch.

Use it when you want to automate agent setup from your own tooling — CRM workflows, CCaaS provisioning, internal platforms, or coding agents — instead of clicking through Agent Studio.

<Note>
  Also known as the **builder APIs** or **Agent Studio APIs**. This reference covers the same surface area.
</Note>

## How it differs from the Conversations API

The Agents API is the **build and deploy** layer. The [Conversations API](/api-reference/conversations/introduction) is the **read and analyze** layer. They're separate services with separate base URLs, auth, and audiences.

|                 | Agents API                         | Conversations API                        |
| --------------- | ---------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------- |
| **Purpose**     | Build and deploy agents            | Read call data and transcripts           |
| **Direction**   | Write (create, update, deploy)     | Read (query, retrieve)                   |
| **Base URL**    | `api.{region}.poly.ai/v1/agents/…` | `api.{region}.platform.polyai.app/v3/…`  |
| **Auth**        | API key (workspace-scoped)         | API key (project-scoped)                 |
| **Who uses it** | Developers automating agent builds | Analysts, integrations pulling call data |

If you want to ship an agent change, use the Agents API. If you want to know what happened in a call, use the Conversations API. See [Getting started](/api-reference/introduction) for the full distinction across all API families.

## Resource model

The Agents API is organized around a small set of nested resources:

```
account
 ├── agent                  # top-level agent resource (created/listed under account)
 └── voice-library          # account-scoped voice catalog (register, list, sample)

agent
 ├── branch                 # isolated working copy
 │    ├── behavior          # system prompt and interaction rules
 │    ├── knowledge-base    # topics and RAG
 │    ├── attributes        # variant dimensions
 │    └── variants          # site-specific overrides
 ├── deployment             # published version per environment
 ├── telephony
 │    ├── connector         # voice-infra binding
 │    └── phone-number      # E.164 number routed to a connector
 └── real-time-config       # runtime values editable without publishing
```

Agents and voice library entries are scoped to an **account**. Everything inside an agent except deployments, telephony, and real-time configs is scoped to a **branch**. The default branch is `main`; create additional branches for parallel development and merge them back.

## Base URL

The Agents API uses the same regional base URL family as [Alerts](/api-reference/alerts/introduction) and [Webhooks](/api-reference/webhooks/introduction):

| Region | Base URL                     |
| ------ | ---------------------------- |
| US     | `https://api.us.poly.ai`     |
| EU     | `https://api.eu.poly.ai`     |
| UK     | `https://api.uk.poly.ai`     |
| Studio | `https://api.studio.poly.ai` |

Most Agents API paths are prefixed with `/v1/agents/{agentId}/…`. Account-scoped endpoints (listing/creating agents, voice library) are prefixed with `/v1/accounts/{accountId}/…`.

<Warning>
  Do not use `https://api.poly.ai` without a region prefix — it returns an error. Always include the region.
</Warning>

## Authentication

All endpoints authenticate with an API key sent in the `x-api-key` header. Keys are scoped to a workspace.

```bash theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"github-dark"}}
curl https://api.us.poly.ai/v1/accounts/ACCOUNT_ID/agents \
  -H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY"
```

<Note>
  Create a workspace-scoped key from the **API Keys** tab on your workspace homepage in Agent Studio — see [API keys](/secrets/api-keys). Copy it when it's shown; the full value only appears once.
</Note>

## Identifiers

Agent Studio labels and API parameters use different names for the same things. `ACCOUNT_ID` above is your **account ID** — Agent Studio's UI calls it the **Workspace ID** and shows it prefixed (`ws-xxxxxxxx`):

| Agent Studio label    | API parameter | Example            |
| --------------------- | ------------- | ------------------ |
| Workspace ID          | `accountId`   | `ws-fd112d8f`      |
| Project ID / Agent ID | `agentId`     | `PROJECT-58RP822I` |

<Note>**Agent ID is the same value as Project ID.** "Agent" is the current product name; "Project" is the legacy term still surfaced in some Agent Studio screens and URLs, and used by the Conversations and Chat APIs. Use the value you see in Agent Studio directly — no transformation needed.</Note>

## Quick start

<Note>
  `main` is read-only — behavior and knowledge base writes go to a **branch**, which you then merge into `main`. Merging publishes to Sandbox automatically. For the full walkthrough (create → configure → test → deploy → observe), see the [API quickstart](/api-reference/quickstart).
</Note>

### 1. Create an agent

```bash theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"github-dark"}}
curl -X POST https://api.us.poly.ai/v1/accounts/ACCOUNT_ID/agents \
  -H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "name": "Support Agent",
    "description": "Handles Tier 1 support for the US market"
  }'
```

The response includes an `agentId` and a default `main` branch.

### 2. Create a working branch

```bash theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"github-dark"}}
curl -X POST https://api.us.poly.ai/v1/agents/AGENT_ID/branches \
  -H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{ "branchName": "quickstart" }'
```

The response returns a `branchId` — use it for the edits below.

### 3. Update the behavior and add a topic

```bash theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"github-dark"}}
curl -X PATCH https://api.us.poly.ai/v1/agents/AGENT_ID/branches/BRANCH_ID/behavior \
  -H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "behavior": "You are a friendly, concise support agent..."
  }'

curl -X POST https://api.us.poly.ai/v1/agents/AGENT_ID/branches/BRANCH_ID/knowledge-base/topics \
  -H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "name": "Password reset",
    "content": "Users can reset their password by..."
  }'
```

### 4. Merge to `main` (publishes to Sandbox)

```bash theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"github-dark"}}
curl -X POST https://api.us.poly.ai/v1/agents/AGENT_ID/branches/BRANCH_ID/merge \
  -H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{ "deploymentMessage": "Initial support agent" }'
```

### 5. Promote to pre-release, then live

Fetch the active Sandbox deployment's `id` (`GET /v1/agents/AGENT_ID/deployments/active`), then promote it. Each promote returns the next environment's `deployment.id`:

```bash theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"github-dark"}}
curl -X POST https://api.us.poly.ai/v1/agents/AGENT_ID/deployments/DEPLOYMENT_ID/promote \
  -H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{ "targetEnvironment": "pre-release" }'
```

## Environments

Deployments run in one of three environments:

| Environment   | Purpose                                                   |
| ------------- | --------------------------------------------------------- |
| `sandbox`     | Safe space for testing without affecting production calls |
| `pre-release` | Staging for final validation before going live            |
| `live`        | Production — serves real customer traffic                 |

Merging a branch into `main` publishes the result to `sandbox`; from there, `promote` moves it through `pre-release` and `live`, and `rollback` reverts a deployment. (The standalone `publish` endpoint deploys the current `main` draft to `sandbox` — redundant right after a merge, which already does this.) See [Environments](/environments-and-versions/introduction) for the full model.

## Branches

Branches are isolated working copies of an agent. Because `main` can't be written to directly, **every** behavior, knowledge base, or variant change starts on a branch:

```bash theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"github-dark"}}
curl -X POST https://api.us.poly.ai/v1/agents/AGENT_ID/branches \
  -H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{ "branchName": "experiment-new-greeting" }'
```

Merge back to `main` when you're ready — this also publishes the result to Sandbox:

```bash theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"github-dark"}}
curl -X POST https://api.us.poly.ai/v1/agents/AGENT_ID/branches/BRANCH_ID/merge \
  -H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{ "deploymentMessage": "Update greeting" }'
```

## Real-time configs

Real-time configs let you change runtime values (opening hours, seasonal messaging, holiday flags) without a publish cycle. Updates take effect immediately.

Define a JSON Schema for a config page, then PATCH variables against it:

```bash theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"github-dark"}}
curl -X PATCH https://api.us.poly.ai/v1/agents/AGENT_ID/real-time-configs/live/variables \
  -H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{ "variables": { "open_hour": 8, "close_hour": 22 } }'
```

## Variants

Variants let you run one agent across many sites — hotel chains, restaurant groups, franchises — with site-specific values (phone number, address, hours). Define attributes (dimensions), then create variants (combinations).

See [Variants](/knowledge/variants/introduction) for the conceptual model.

## Error responses

| Status | Description                                            |
| ------ | ------------------------------------------------------ |
| 400    | Validation error - check request body or parameters    |
| 401    | Missing or invalid API key                             |
| 403    | API key lacks permission for the workspace or resource |
| 404    | Resource not found                                     |
| 409    | Conflict - e.g. merging a branch with diverged state   |
| 422    | Malformed ID or schema validation error                |
| 500    | Internal server error                                  |

### Example error response

```json theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"github-dark"}}
{
  "message": "Validation failed",
  "errors": [
    {
      "field": "name",
      "message": "must be between 1 and 128 characters"
    }
  ]
}
```

## Related

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Environments" icon="rocket" href="/environments-and-versions/introduction">
    How sandbox, pre-release, and live environments fit together.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Variants" icon="sitemap" href="/knowledge/variants/introduction">
    Run one agent across many sites with attribute-driven variants.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Telephony" icon="phone" href="/voice-channel/numbers/introduction">
    Provision phone numbers and route them to connectors.
  </Card>

  <Card title="FAQs" icon="book" href="/knowledge/faqs/introduction">
    How knowledge base topics power retrieval and actions.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>