AI engineering glossary · Agents tools MCP
What is tool selection?
Tool selection: The model's choice of which tool, if any, to use for the current step. Clear names and descriptions improve it, while many overlapping tools cause wrong picks, so teams keep tools distinct and few.
Tool selection: an example
With tools search_docs and search_web, the model picks search_docs for 'What is our refund policy?' because the description says it covers internal policy.
Related terms
More Agents tools MCP terms
Where you learn it
Tool selection is part of the AI Engineering Program, which teaches it with notes, a hands-on lab and an exam. The first lesson is free.