AI Glossary
What is Tool Use?
Overview
Tool use is the ability of an AI system to call external tools such as search, code execution, databases, calculators, or business APIs. It matters because many real tasks require current data or side effects that a language model cannot provide from weights alone.
Why it matters
Tool use is a core capability for agents that need to inspect, decide, and act across software environments.
Where it appears in AI research
- Agent benchmarks
- Coding assistant workflows
- Enterprise AI automation
- Function calling and MCP integrations