Definition: AI agent

An AI agent is software that interacts with the environment. Extremely versatile, AI agents can not only employ small and large language models to obtain knowledge but they can use external sources such as databases and websites. For the study that evaluates AI agents, see AI Agent Index.

Agents and Autonomous Agents
Although agent is the generic term, an "autonomous agent" means that after it is created it can begin processing on its own based on an event such as the time of day, a price drop for a product or day of the month. A regular agent requires a prompt; however, the terminology is not cast in concrete and an agent may refer to both types.

AI agents are like highly intelligent bots, which have been around for decades (see bot). See agent, AI agent sprawl, Model Context Protocol and reinforcement learning.

AI agents are becoming popular because they add human-like decision making to traditional computer-based tasks. They can not only handle routine functions such as scheduling a meeting or booking a trip, but they may be able to refine their algorithms to improve their effectiveness the next time. See AI deep research.

Agent Terminology
Also called "agentic AI," an AI agent may be part of an AI application, which is often called just plain AI; for example, "an AI can do that job." See AI model.

A Social Network for AI Agents
Believe it or not, a social network was created to allow AI agents to interact with each other! See Moltbook.

Replacing Everything?
In late 2024, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said AI agents are going to be part of all software applications in the future. Considering that Microsoft has made a fortune in business applications, Nadella's comment sparked a lot of controversy.

In April 2026, Google CEO Sundar Pichai claimed that 89% of businesses were already running AI agents, and the average company was using at least a dozen. Nevertheless, by all accounts, we seem heading into a different technological future. Stay tuned! See AI anxiety.

The Future?

Artisan's eye-popping banner at the HumanX AI conference in 2025 created a lot of attention. "Stop Hiring Humans" means Artisan's AI sales agent does the work of several people, and there is no need to hire more. See HumanX. (Image courtesy of Artisan AI Inc.)