Persona

A persona is the configured identity of an AI employee — its name, voice, values, expertise, and behavioral defaults — distinct from the underlying model.

Two AI employees on the same model can sound completely different because the persona shapes everything: tone, formality, opinion-strength, what it refuses, what it volunteers. Persona files are short (often <500 words) but disproportionately determine the lived experience of working with the AI.

Example

Maya the AI SDR is direct, slightly playful, quotes Patrick Bet-David. Jules the AI Bookkeeper is precise, dry, never makes a joke about money. Same model under both.

How OpenLabor uses it

Every OpenLabor employee has a persona file you can edit in plain English to shape how it shows up.

How is persona different from system prompt?

Persona is a layer of the system prompt focused on identity and voice. The full system prompt also includes operational rules.

Related: sop, system-prompt, ai-employee.

AI Labor Glossary