Purchasing partner agents

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Important:

This feature is currently not supported in AWS and On-premises deployments.

As an admin, you can now purchase and use partner agents directly from the catalog. This in-app experience helps you discover, review, and subscribe to partner agents without leaving the watsonx Orchestrate workspace.

Partner agents are prebuilt AI agents that are developed by IBM-approved partners and made available in the watsonx Orchestrate catalog. For more information, see Partner agents.

Buying partner agents from the catalog helps you:

  • Browse available partner agents directly in the catalog.

  • Understand agent features.

  • Subscribe or unlock agents with just a few clicks.

  • Manage subscriptions and credentials from the IBM Cloud console.

This unified experience streamlines setup and enables faster access to partner-built agents that extend your organization’s automations.

Identifying partner agents that require purchase

Partner agents that require a subscription are marked with a lock icon. The lock indicates that the agent is available only after purchase. To learn more about a locked agent:

  • Open agent details page from the catalog.

  • Review the following information:

    • Description – What the agent does and how it helps.

    • Configuration – The model used and agent ID.

    • Publisher – The partner who created the agent.

    • Collaborations – Other agents or tools used in the agent.

Use this information to evaluate the agent before proceeding with a purchase.

Before you begin

Before you purchase a partner agent:

  • Ensure that you are signed in as an admin with purchase privileges in the IBM Cloud account.

Purchasing a partner agent

To purchase and unlock a Partner agent:

  1. From the main menu, go to Discover.

  2. Find the partner agent that you want to purchase.

  3. Click the agent tile to open the agent details page.

  4. Click Unlock agent. The Purchase agent subscription page opens, showing the available plans.

  5. Select the plan you prefer (for example, Monthly subscription – USD 10 per instance).

  6. Review and select the agreement checkbox.

You can also click the Terms and conditions link to open the terms and conditions on the provider platform.

  1. Click Purchase now.

    • A Purchase in progress message appears to indicate that a transaction is underway.

    • When the transaction completes, a confirmation message appears with a Manage subscription button.

  2. (Optional) You can also access Manage subscription and credentials from the right-side panel to view your subscription details and manage your agent credentials.

After the purchase completes, the agent becomes available for builders in your watsonx Orchestrate instance.

Billing depends on the partner’s agreement with IBM. See Understanding billing and usage tracking for details.

Manage your subscription in IBM Cloud Console

After you purchase a partner agent, you can manage your subscription and credentials from the IBM Cloud console. To access your subscription details:

  1. In the agent’s details page, click Manage subscription and credentials.

  2. In the IBM Cloud console, you can:

    • View instance details: See information like Instance ID, Account ID, Environment, and Status.

    • Manage credentials: Go to the Service credentials tab to create credentials for using the agent in watsonx Orchestrate.

    • Find your agent instance: Find your agent instance in the Resource list.

If you delete the service instance from IBM Cloud Console, the agent becomes locked again in watsonx Orchestrate.

What to do next

After your purchase is complete:

  • Click Use as template to start using the agent. You can create a new agent based on this template or add it as a collaborator agent.

  • Select Manage subscription and credentials in the agent details page to view your active subscription and access your purchased instance in the IBM Cloud console.