Collaborate on work items with AI agents
Collaborate directly on work items with Rovo agents or other AI agents. Using artificial intelligence and machine learning, Rovo is an AI tool that is integrated into our cloud-based apps.
To get started
You’ll need to be a site admin to enable Rovo, AI features, or MCP agents. Read more
Enable Rovo and Jira AI on your site. See: Manage Rovo access
The quality, accuracy, and reliability of information generated by AI may vary. Find out why
When you add an agent to a work item, you establish a two-way interaction with that agent. You can assign the agent to a work item or trigger the agent as work moves through your workflow. Agents help with first drafts, quick summaries, and specific tasks so you can keep work moving where it's tracked.
Once assigned a task and set to work, the agent provides an output for you to review in the Agents section on a work item. Only you can view, interact with, and share the agent's output.
When you’re happy with the result, you can share the output as a comment or attachment on the work item for your team to also view.
Once you add an agent to a space, you can collaborate in four ways:
Add an agent using the Agents button on a work item.
@mention an agent in a comment.
Add an agent to workflow transitions.
Add an agent to a column on the board.
Set up a Rovo agent for collaboration
Have a think about which agent will best suit the task, and switch agents if your requirements change.
Once it’s set up to collaborate on work items, you can assign work to a Rovo agent by Atlassian, a Rovo agent created by someone on your space, and agents built by third parties. More: Add an external MCP server from Atlassian Administration
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To connect a Rovo agent to your site:
In the top left navigation, go to Switch sites or apps ().
Select Studio, then Agents.
Choose either Browse agents or Create an agent.
More: Create and edit Rovo agents and Rovo agent permissions and governance
After you add an agent, you will need to give it permission to collaborate with you. You’ll need to do this once per agent.
To set up an agent for collaboration:
Select the agent you’ve recently added.
In the sidebar, find Configuration.
Select Surfaces, then turn on the Work item toggle.
Now you can assign work to, or @mention the agent, from all spaces within your site. Turn this on or off any time.
Assign work to an agent
There are multiple ways you can assign work to an agent. Keep in mind: only the person who adds the agent as an assignee, or transitions a work item that triggers an agent, can interact with the agent directly. However, anyone with access to the work item can see that an agent has been triggered, and any agent output can be shared with your entire team.
The agent may use details from other work items in your site to build context.
Add an agent using the Agent picker
To add an agent as a collaborator on a work item:
Open the relevant work item from any view.
Select Agents to open the Agent picker.
Select the agent you’d like to work with.
Once assigned, the agent will get to work on the task you’ve assigned it.
The agent will use the work item’s summary and description, and may use comments and attachments to build context.
When you open the Agent picker, one recommended agent appears at the top of the list. The picker also helps you browse agents in these categories:
Favorites: Shows up to eight favorites. Select See more to open Browse Agents if you have more than eight favorites.
Coding agents: Shows coding agents, including agents that are not installed. Site admins can select Install. Other users can select Request to ask an admin to install an agent.
Others: Shows agents that do not appear in the other categories.
To find more agents, select Browse Agents. You can favorite or unfavorite an agent from its card in the picker.
Create an agent from a work item
If you don’t have an agent that suits your needs, you can create one directly from the work item.
Open the relevant work item.
Select Agents to open the Agent picker.
Select Create agent in the footer of the picker.
Complete the creation flow, then assign the agent to the work item.
Once assigned, the agent appears in the Agents section of the work item and starts executing the task.
@mention an agent in a comment
To summon an agent in a comment on a work item:
Open the relevant work item from any view.
In the Activity section, choose the Comments tab.
In a comment, enter @, then the name of the agent you want to summon.
The agent will refer to the comment's context and may access information directly on the work item, such as the description or attachments. Then, it will get to work.
Add an agent to workflow transitions
You must have the following to do the things described in this section.
Role: Space admin
Permission: Edit workflows
You can begin to automate when an agent picks up work by assigning the agent to a workflow transition. In this case, the agent is triggered when work transitions from one status to another. Before you get started, make sure Rovo is enabled in your space and that all required permissions are granted. More on Rovo permissions
Keep in mind: the agent is triggered when any team member moves a work item to the allocated status.
To trigger an agent on a workflow transition:
From any Jira Cloud space:
Select Settings (), then Work items.
Select Workflows, then find the workflow you want to update.
Select More actions (•••), then Edit to open a diagram of your workflow in the workflow editor.
From a team-managed space:
Go to Space settings, then Work types, and select a work type.
Select Edit workflow.
Then, in the workflow editor:
Find a transition you’d like to add an agent to. Select Add rule.
From the dialog, select Trigger agent action.
In the dropdown, find Add agent. Enter an optional custom prompt, then select Add.
When you’re happy with your changes, select Update workflow, then Save.
Add an agent to a column on the board
This section only applies to team-managed software spaces. To check whether your space is team-managed or company-managed, select More actions (•••) next to the space name in either the header or the sidebar. At the bottom of the menu that opens, your space details will be shown.
To assign an agent to a column on your board:
If you’re not already there, navigate to the Board view.
Select More actions () in the top right of your chosen column.
Select Add agents.
The agent gets to work when anyone moves work into the column it’s added to.
Share the output
All agent activity and updates are displayed on a work item and in your Rovo chat history. It’s only visible to you, so you can explore ideas with the agent and choose when to share the final output.
To share what you and an agent have worked on:
Open the work item you and an agent are collaborating on.
Expand Agent sessions to view the agent's activity.
Adjust the output and complete any steps that require your input.
Select Publish when you’re ready. This completes the task but doesn’t share the output.
To share the output, expand Agents.
Select Draft comment.
Tweak the comment, then select Save to share.
For more on how Rovo works, its limitations, and our commitment to privacy, visit the Atlassian Trust Center.
How does Rovo credit usage work for agent orchestration in Jira
AI agents in Jira use Rovo credits. Each time an agent is invoked to work on a Jira work item, credits are used from your organization's Rovo credit balance. More about Rovo credit usage
This includes:
Assigning an agent to a work item.
@mention an agent in a comment.
Triggering an agent through a Jira workflow, such as a workflow transition or board column.
The number of credits used depends on the agent configuration and thinking mode used to complete the task.
Rovo credit allowances will be applied starting December 3, 2026. Organization admins can view and manage their usage in Atlassian Administration.
When using our services, customers must comply with the Atlassian Acceptable Use Policy.
What to expect if you go over your credit allowance
What happens when you exceed your credit allowance depends on your plan. Organization and billing admins set usage limits and have controls to adjust limits as needed.
When you reach your usage limit with extra usage enabled, AI agent orchestration in Jira continues without interruption. Admins are notified at 80% and 100% usage, and extra usage is charged on your next invoice. More about extra usage
If you need to use more than your total allowance, you can also consider purchasing usage packs.
Organization admins can track Rovo credit usage in Atlassian Administration.
To view your usage:
Go to Atlassian Administration. Select your organization if you have more than one.
Select Insights, then Platform usage.
From here, you can view your total credit allowance, current usage, app-level trends, user-level usage, and which features are consuming credits.
Agents in Jira are a premium AI feature that consume Rovo credits. Find out how Rovo credits work for premium AI features.
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