From chatbot to agent: the evolution that changes the rules
In 2023, you asked ChatGPT "how do I book a flight?" and it gave you instructions.
In 2026, you tell it "book a flight to Madrid next week" and it does it.
"AI agents represent the next frontier of productivity." — Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft
What is Agentic AI?
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ GENERATIVE AI vs AGENTIC AI │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ │
│ GENERATIVE AI AGENTIC AI │
│ ───────────── ────────── │
│ │
│ Answers questions Executes tasks │
│ One conversation turn Multiple steps │
│ Needs supervision Semi-autonomous │
│ Produces text/images Produces ACTIONS │
│ │
│ "How do I do X?" → "Do X" │
│ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
An AI agent can:
- Plan a sequence of actions
- Use tools (APIs, browser, code)
- Make decisions based on results
- Iterate until completing the objective
The anatomy of an agent
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ AGENT STRUCTURE │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ │
│ ┌─────────────┐ │
│ │ BRAIN │ │
│ │ (LLM) │ │
│ └──────┬──────┘ │
│ │ │
│ ┌──────────────┼──────────────┐ │
│ │ │ │ │
│ ┌────▼────┐ ┌────▼────┐ ┌────▼────┐ │
│ │ MEMORY │ │PLANNING │ │ TOOLS │ │
│ │ │ │ │ │ │ │
│ └─────────┘ └─────────┘ └─────────┘ │
│ │
│ Remembers Decides Executes │
│ context what to do actions │
│ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Agents are already among us
| Product | What it does | Company |
|---|---|---|
| Claude Computer Use | Controls your computer | Anthropic |
| Operator | Navigates and executes on web | OpenAI |
| Devin | Programs autonomously | Cognition AI |
| Cursor Agent | Develops code end-to-end | Cursor |
When to use each type
| Task | Generative AI | Agentic AI |
|---|---|---|
| Write an email | Ideal | Unnecessary |
| Research + write report | Possible | Better |
| Book + coordinate + confirm | Cannot | Necessary |
| Refactor 50 files | Difficult | Better |