Path smoothing
Post-processing a jagged, node-by-node path into a natural, straighter line that a character can actually follow.
A search over a grid or a navmesh yields a path strung together from discrete steps: staircasing on a grid, or a zigzag between polygon edges. The simplest smoothing is line-of-sight shortcutting — if the agent can see a point further ahead unobstructed, the intermediate steps are dropped. For a corridor of navmesh polygons the funnel algorithm is used instead, pulling a string as taut as it can between the left and right edges.
Mikko Mononen's "Simple Stupid Funnel Algorithm" is the most widely used implementation. Smoothing is almost always a final step after A* or jump point search, which optimise for search time rather than how the path looks. Without it the character moves mechanically and turns at needless angles.