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AI inbox agent: every email sorted, routed and answered in draft, ready for a person to send
An AI inbox agent reads each email that reaches a shared inbox, labels it, sends it to the right person or queue and writes a reply draft from your own information. Your team checks the draft and sends it — or lets the agent send routine answers you've approved.
What is an AI inbox agent?
An AI inbox agent is a system that reads incoming email, decides what each message is about and what should happen next, and prepares the response — a label, a forward, a ticket, a CRM update or a reply draft. Unlike simple filter rules, it understands the meaning of the message, so "can you move my delivery to next week?" and "I won't be home on Tuesday" end up in the same place. People stay in control of what is sent.
Do you need an AI inbox agent?
- "Our info@ inbox has hundreds of unread emails and nobody owns it."
- "Urgent emails get buried under newsletters, invoices and spam."
- "Several people answer the same inbox, and some emails get two replies while others get none."
- "We write the same reply many times a day, with small changes."
- "Invoices, orders and support questions all arrive at the same address."
What do we build?
- Classification of every incoming email into categories you define, with urgency and language detected.
- Routing to the right person, team or queue, or into a helpdesk, CRM or project tool as a ticket or task.
- Reply drafts written from your help docs, policies, past replies and, where connected, order or customer data.
- Automatic sending only for categories you approve, such as confirmations or simple factual answers.
- Data extraction from emails, for example order numbers, dates or attached invoices, passed to the right workflow.
- A daily overview of what arrived, what was handled and what is still waiting.
How does an AI inbox agent handle an email?
- Read. The agent picks up each new email, including attachments.
- Sort. It assigns a category and urgency, and spots spam and newsletters.
- Route. The email is labelled, assigned or turned into a ticket or task.
- Draft. A reply is prepared in your tone, using only your approved information.
- Approve. A person reviews and sends it, unless the category is approved for automatic sending.
What can it do with different kinds of email?
| What the agent does | Sent automatically? | |
|---|---|---|
| Customer questions | Drafts an answer from your help docs | Only for approved simple answers |
| Order or booking changes | Finds the order, drafts the update | Usually reviewed |
| Sales enquiries | Creates the lead in your CRM, alerts sales | No — sales replies personally |
| Invoices and documents | Passes them to document processing | No reply needed |
| Spam and newsletters | Labels and archives | No reply |
How do you stay in control of what gets sent?
By default, the agent never sends anything: it sorts, routes and drafts, and a person clicks send. Once you have seen enough drafts in a category to trust them, that category can be switched to automatic sending — and switched back at any time.
Drafts are written only from information you've approved, so the agent can't promise refunds or discounts your policy doesn't allow. Anything it's unsure about is marked for a person rather than guessed. We review a sample of real emails with you during the build and track how often drafts are sent unchanged.
Which tools can it connect to?
The agent works with the inbox and tools you already use. For example:
Whether a tool can be connected automatically depends on its API and your plan, which we confirm during the audit.
What about data privacy?
Email contains personal and often confidential information. The agent only gets access to the inboxes you choose, with the narrowest permissions possible. The workflow can run on self-hosted n8n, emails are not used to train models, and the model provider — including privately hosted options — is agreed with you in the proposal.
How long does it take and what does it cost?
A first inbox agent for one shared inbox typically takes 3–5 weeks. Setup starts at $2,500, and monthly care starts at $300 per month. AI model usage is paid to the model provider and grows with email volume; we estimate it with you up front.
Monthly care covers updating categories and answers, reviewing emails the agent couldn't handle, adjusting rules and fixing connections. Payments for the build are milestone-based, and the launch includes one month of free bug fixing.
When is an AI inbox agent not a fit?
Good fit when…
- A shared inbox gets dozens or hundreds of emails a day
- Many emails need similar answers or routing
- Emails often wait too long for a first reply
- Someone can review drafts, at least at the start
Not a fit when…
- Your helpdesk's built-in AI already covers it
- Every email needs a personal, expert answer
- Only a few emails arrive each day
- Policies and answers aren't written down anywhere
Frequently asked questions
Can AI reply to emails automatically?
It can, but we start with drafts that a person sends. Once a category of emails has proven reliable, such as confirmations or simple factual answers, it can be switched to automatic sending, and switched back at any time.
Does it work with Gmail and Outlook?
Yes. The agent connects to Gmail and Google Workspace or Outlook and Microsoft 365 shared inboxes, and can also work inside helpdesks such as Zendesk, Freshdesk or Help Scout.
How is an inbox agent different from email filters?
Filters match fixed words or senders. An AI inbox agent understands what a message means, so differently worded emails about the same issue are sorted the same way, and it can draft a reply and extract data, not just move the email.
Will the agent make promises we can't keep?
Drafts are written only from your approved information and policies, and anything uncertain is marked for a person. By default a person reviews every reply before it's sent.
How much does an AI inbox agent cost?
At Webziper, an inbox agent starts at $2,500 to set up, with monthly care from $300 per month. Model usage is paid to the provider and depends on email volume.
Shared inbox out of control?
Tell us what lands in your inbox on a typical day. We'll show you what can be sorted and drafted automatically.
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