# Acting in a person's name

URL: /agents/operating-models/acting-for-a-person · Id: `page:agents/operating-models/acting-for-a-person`

> An Agent sends as itself or, under a Human's Mandate, as that Human; each Human who joins a Startup can grant one.

An [Agent](/business/nouns/agent) sends in one of two ways: as itself, or for a [Human](/business/nouns/human) under that Human's [Mandate](/business/nouns/mandate). An autonomous [Startup](/business/nouns/startup) uses only the first; each Human who joins can grant the second.

## As itself
An Agent acting as itself uses the Startup's accounts and its own [Mailbox](/business/nouns/mailbox). Every [Message](/business/nouns/message) says it comes from an Agent, and every [Action](/business/nouns/action) is by the Agent, for the Startup.

This is the only mode with no Humans, and it stays the default in every model. A Startup's support replies, onboarding emails, and posts from its own social accounts all go out this way.

## For a human, under delegation
A Human connects their own accounts, such as email, LinkedIn, X, or Slack. They then [authorize](/business/nouns/mandate/authorize) a Mandate scoped by [Channel](/business/nouns/channel), volume, topics, and [Limits](/business/nouns/limit). Within it, the Agent drafts and sends as that Human, who stays the principal and the author of record.

Every Action under the Mandate records three things: `by` names the Agent, `for` names the Human, and the Mandate itself. A one-way send, such as a first outreach to a new [Contact](/business/nouns/contact), follows the Mandate's delay window or its approval rule.

The Human's stream shows everything sent in their name. Pausing or [revoking](/business/nouns/mandate/revoke) the Mandate takes effect at once: new sends are refused, and nothing waits on a queue.

A founder of a hiring-software Startup grants her [Sales Lead](/agents/sales/sales-lead) Agent a Mandate on her email and LinkedIn accounts. It covers 40 messages a day on product demos, with no pricing commitments. When a prospect asks for a discount, the reply falls outside the Mandate's topics and lands with her as an [Approval](/business/nouns/approval).

## Floor rows that wake
Delegated sending wakes [Delegated sending](/systems/legal-and-corporate/floor/delegated-sending), which applies each jurisdiction's bot-disclosure law. Posting or messaging on a venue through a Human's account wakes [Automation terms](/systems/legal-and-corporate/floor/automation-terms), which holds the Agent to that venue's rules.

An Agent talking to a person as itself already sits under [AI disclosure](/systems/legal-and-corporate/floor/ai-disclosure). Delegation adds rows; it never removes one.

## Several humans, several Mandates
Each Human grants their own Mandate, and no Agent sends for one Human under another's. One Agent can hold Mandates from several Humans at once, each with its own Limits, expiry, and history.

When a Human leaves, their Mandates are revoked, and their open [Tasks](/business/nouns/task) hand off within the [Role](/business/nouns/role). Every Message sent in their name stays on the record.

## Next
- [Mandates and limits](/agents/mandates-and-limits): how Limits bound every Mandate.
- [Who decides](/agents/operating-models/who-decides): Approvals and delay windows by operating model.