Learn how the Archive Agent extracts contract data and helps you archive workflows more efficiently. The Archive Agent reads the latest signed contract, fills empty workflow properties, and provides suggestions for properties that already contain values on manual archive workflows. You can apply it to all workflows or a selected subset, including workflows configured for manual archive or auto-archive.
Use Case
Your legal team archives hundreds of executed vendor agreements each quarter. They want every executed contract to enter the Repository with complete, trustworthy metadata for search, reporting, renewals, obligation tracking, and downstream automation. With the Archive Agent enabled, it reads the signed contract when a selected workflow moves from the Sign stage to the Archive stage. On manual archive workflows, it fills empty properties and suggests values for properties that already contain data so a reviewer can verify the results. On auto-archive workflows, it applies the extracted values and the workflow archives automatically.
Prerequisites
| Features |
Woprkflows, Ironclad Assistant, Archive Agent |
| Permissions |
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Ironclad Early Access Program: This feature is in Early Access and may change before it is generally available. If you interested in this feature, please reach out to your Ironclad representative or Support to see if you're eligible for EAP access.
Enable/Access: Starting September 1, 2026, eligible AI agents move from the current uncapped trial to credit-based usage. Each Archive Agent action uses AI Credits from your account's shared balance. If your account has hard caps enabled and runs out of AI Credits, the Archive Agent will not run automatically in the background. For more information, see AI Credits in Ironclad.
What Is the Archive Agent?
The Archive Agent is an AI-powered feature that reads a signed contract when a workflow moves from the Sign stage to the Archive stage. It reviews the signed contract alongside the workflow's existing metadata and Archive form, including helper text, pre-filled values, question text, and data types. It then extracts values from the latest signed contract and provides an explanation and source for each extracted value.
The Archive Agent helps you add contract metadata to Repository records for search, reporting, renewals, obligation tracking, and downstream automation.
For each extracted value, the agent can display:
Reasoning: A plain-language explanation of why the agent selected the value.
Source Citation: A source chip that takes you to the location in the signed document where the agent found the information.
Suggestion: On manual archive workflows, a suggestion chip for a property that already contains a value. Select the suggestion chip to review the proposed value and why the agent recommended it.
If the agent updates a value that was previously filled in, you can click Reset to previous value to undo the action.
How Does the Archive Agent Work?
When you click Archive on a workflow at the Archive stage, the agent runs three steps in the background:
- Prepares the document for AI reading: The agent processes the signed contract so it can be accurately read and analyzed.
- Analyzes your workflow metadata and archive form: The agent reviews the document alongside your existing workflow metadata fields. Any helper text, pre-filled values, and question text are passed along to the agent. The Archive Agent proposes values for each field based on the latest signed contract.
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Generates explanations and citations:
- If it's a manual archive workflow, the agent updates data in existing fields if the field is empty, and suggests a value if there's already a value in the field.
- If it's an auto-archive workflow, the agent updates all data in existing fields. The workflow then automatically archives itself.
Note:
The Archive Agent doesn't overwrite values in fields. If a value exists in a field, the Archive Agent will suggest a new value.
Once complete, you see a side-by-side view: the signed document on the left, proposed field values on the right. Review the suggestions, make any edits, and click Archive to archive the workflow.
The agent's behavior after it finishes depends on the workflow's archive behavior, whether it's a:
Manual Archive Workflow, or
Auto-Archive Workflow
Manual Archive Workflows
On a manual archive workflow, the Archive Agent waits for a reviewer to review the extracted values before the workflow archives. It fills empty fields automatically. If a field already contains a value, it does not overwrite that value. Instead, it displays a suggestion that the reviewer can review and accept.
Reviewers can accept suggestions individually or select Accept all to apply all suggestions at once. They then select Archive to archive the workflow.
Auto-Archive Workflows
On an auto-archive workflow, the Archive Agent applies all extracted property values, including replacing existing property values and filling empty fields.
The workflow then automatically archives into the Repository.
Use the Archive Agent on auto-archive workflows only when you do not need a person in the loop to review the extracted data before the workflow archives.
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