News
In Brief
- Workday enters a definitive agreement to acquire AI knowledge firm Sana Labs.
- Workday introduced Workday Build, a new platform for AI-powered solution creation.
- New Flowise Agent Builder supports custom AI agent development within Workday.
- Expanded Illuminate agents address HR, Finance and industry-specific needs.
- Workday also launched Flex Credits for scalable access to AI innovations.
Workday today entered a definitive agreement to buy AI firm Sana, known for its knowledge management, learning and agent capabilities. Sana Labs' stated goal is to "bring superintelligence to work."
Workday will integrate Sana's Agent and Learning platforms and knowledge management capabilities into its offerings, positioning itself as "the new front door for work." Rather than limiting itself to HR and finance services, Workday aims to become the central interface through which employees access all enterprise systems.
The company also announced a series of AI-focused updates at its Workday Rising 2025 event in San Francisco today. Central to the news was Workday Build, a developer platform that allows customers and partners to create, share and scale AI-powered solutions directly on the Workday platform.
The launch also included the introduction of Workday Flowise Agent Builder, a low-code tool for building custom AI agents that the company acquired in August 2025. Workday also introduced new Workday Illuminate agents and a new consumption model called Workday Flex Credits.
According to company officials, Workday Build provides enterprise developers with access to applications, data and AI capabilities while maintaining enterprise-grade security. The platform consolidates tools such as Developer Copilot, Agent Gateway APIs and Data Cloud access, making it easier to customize and extend Workday functionality.
Workday Illuminate Expands AI Agents for HR, Finance, Industry
The new Workday Illuminate AI agents are designed to embed automation directly into HR, Finance and industry workflows.
These agents handle processes including:
- HR Agents: Business Process Copilot Agent, Employee Sentiment Agent, Job Architecture Agent and Performance Agent.
- Finance Agents: Financial Close Agent, Cost and Profitability Agent and Financial Test Agent.
- Industry Agents: Academic Requirements Agent and Student Administration Agent.
The new agents join Workday’s existing portfolio, including Payroll Agent, Contract Intelligence Agent and Recruiter Agent.
Finally, to support adoption, Workday introduced Flex Credits, a subscription-based model allowing customers to allocate credits toward agents and platform innovations as needed. Flex Credits are included in every subscription and can scale with organizational demand.
The company positions this model as a way for businesses to adopt AI at their own pace while maintaining flexibility and cost transparency.
Workday Positions AI Platform Amid Rising Enterprise Demand
Workday’s updates come at a time when enterprise software vendors move from generic “AI Inside” branding toward embedding AI into enterprise workflows. Studies show that many AI deployments fail to deliver measurable returns. Workday’s strategy aims to address this by integrating AI into HR and Finance processes where it can deliver direct business value.
“Too many AI efforts amount to random acts of automation that never scale or deliver real value. With purpose-built AI agents and a single, open enterprise platform, we’re redefining ERP for the AI era.”
- Gerrit Kazmaier
President of Product and Technology, Workday
New Workday AI Capabilities
While the Sana acquisition was the big news, below are the new AI tools and functionality Workday introduced today:
| Capability | Description |
|---|---|
| Flowise Agent Builder | Low-code tool for designing AI agents within Workday. |
| Developer Copilot | Gen AI-powered assistant to enhance developer productivity. |
| Agent Gateway | MCP-compliant APIs for connecting AI agents with Workday. |
| Illuminate AI Agents | Purpose-built agents embedded in HR, Finance and industry workflows, designed to automate tasks such as performance reviews, workforce planning, financial close, academic requirements and student administration. |
| Data Cloud | Zero-copy access to HR and finance data for enterprise platforms. |
| Marketplace | Ecosystem of vetted, purpose-built partner solutions |
| Developer Community | Global network for learning, certification and collaboration. |
| Flex Credits | Subscription-based model providing flexible access to Workday agents and platform innovations, scalable with organizational needs. |
Workday Expands AI and Acquisition Strategy
Workday has accelerated its artificial intelligence initiatives and acquisition activity over the past year, positioning itself for expanded capabilities in human resources and financial management.
The company, which serves more than 10,500 organizations globally including over 60% of the Fortune 500, first released GenAI capabilities in its Workday Adaptive Planning product in September 2023. It announced Workday Illuminate in September 2024, described as a next-generation AI offering designed to enhance automation and intelligence across its application suite.
Sana, Evisort, Paradox and Flowise Acquisitions Target AI Capabilities
Beyond today's Sana announcement, Workday completed two notable acquisitions aimed at strengthening its AI portfolio in the last year. In September 2024, the company signed an agreement to acquire Evisort, a contract intelligence platform. More recently, in August 2025, Workday moved to acquire Paradox, an AI company focused on improving frontline candidate experience.
According to company officials, these acquisitions underscore Workday's commitment to expanding its AI and automation capabilities for both HR and financial management functions.
Partnership Strategy Includes Integration Focus
The company has also invested in strategic partnerships to extend its platform reach. Workday's integration with Glean announced in May 2025 allows users to interact with Workday agents directly from Glean's platform, which the companies assert streamlines HR and productivity tasks.
In June 2024, Workday enhanced its partner and developer ecosystem with the launch of Built on Workday, the addition of AI services for its Workday Extend developer platform and the general availability of Workday AI Marketplace, expanding opportunities for third-party integrations.
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Workday's Forward-Looking Priorities
Company leadership has emphasized continued investment in AI development and partner network expansion as key priorities. Workday's forward-looking statements highlight focus areas including growth, innovation and risk management across security, privacy and global economic factors.
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