Better AI Agent for n8n

An improved AI Agent node for n8n that provides better memory management, modern AI SDK integration and a webhook option to push intermediate messages as they happen.

Features

- Conversation Memory that includes Tools – every user message, tool call and tool result is stored.
- Modern AI SDK Providers – wraps OpenAI (including GPT-5), Gemini and Anthropic through stable Vercel AI SDK v4.
- Live Streaming Updates: Intermediate Webhook URL lets you push each agent step in real-time

Installation

``bash
npm install n8n-nodes-better-ai-agent
`

Compatibility

This node is designed to be a drop-in replacement for the existing AI Agent node while providing enhanced functionality:

- ✅ Works with existing Language Model nodes
- ✅ Works with existing Memory nodes
- ✅ Works with existing Tool nodes
- ✅ Works with existing Output Parser nodes
- ✅ Maintains same input/output interface

Key Improvements Over Standard Agent

$3

- Connected Chat Trigger Node: Automatically uses chatInput from chat triggers
- Define below: Use expressions or static text

$3

- System Message: Define the agent's behavior and personality
- Max Tool Calls: Limit the number of tool interaction rounds
- Intermediate Webhook URL: Send each partial reply/tool-call to an external workflow in real-time
- Verbose Logs: Enable/disable detailed console logging
- Temperature: Control response creativity (0.0 = deterministic, 1.0 = creative)
- Max Tokens: Set response length limits

$3

`
Chat Trigger → Better AI Agent → Response
↗ OpenAI Model
↗ Buffer Memory
↗ Calculator Tool
↗ Web Search Tool
`

Technical Details

$3

Unlike the original agent, this node ensures that all tool interactions are preserved in memory:

`
User: "What's 25 * 47 and then search for that number"
Assistant: [calls calculator tool]
Tool: "1175"
Assistant: [calls web search tool with "1175"]
Tool: [search results]
Assistant: "The result is 1175. Here's what I found about it..."
`

All of these interactions are saved to memory for future reference.

$3

Uses modern patterns from Vercel AI SDK:

- Built-in tool calling support
- Automatic conversation management
- Better error handling
- Real-time step streaming via onStepFinish

$3

| Limitation | Work-around |
|------------|------------|
| n8n UI does not highlight the attached model or tool nodes because only the Agent executes code | Rely on the Agent output or streamed webhook messages for visibility |
| Tool nodes without an explicit Zod/JSON schema (e.g. raw HTTP Request) may receive incorrect argument keys | Wrap such tools in a Custom Code Tool and define a schema, or add few-shot examples |
| Streaming is step-level, not token-level; the n8n node outputs only when the Agent finishes | Use the Intermediate Webhook to push interim messages to a Chat, Slack, etc. |
| The node's dependencies must be available next to ~/.n8n/custom/BetterAiAgent.node.js | Run npm run deploy-local (copies package.json and installs runtime deps) |

Development

$3

`bash
git clone
cd better-ai-agent
npm install
npm run build
`

$3

`bash
npm test
`

$3

`bash
npm run package
npm publish
`

Troubleshooting

$3

1. "No language model connected": Ensure you've connected a language model node
2. Tool calls not working: Verify your tools are properly configured and connected
3. Memory not persisting: Check that your memory node is correctly connected

$3

The node outputs additional debug information:

- usage: Token usage statistics
- finishReason: Why the generation stopped
- toolCalls: List of tools that were called
- toolResults`: Results from tool executions

Contributing

We welcome contributions! Please see our contributing guidelines for more information.

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.

Support

- Create an issue for bugs or feature requests
- Join the n8n community for general support
- Check the documentation for detailed usage examples