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What Is an AI Agent?
@ a16z
05/02/25
Takeaways
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a16z Cast
05/02/25
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There's significant disagreement on what constitutes an AI agent, with varying definitions emerging from both technical and marketing perspectives.
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a16z Cast
05/02/25
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A simple definition of an agent is a clever prompt on top of a knowledge base or context, resembling a human agent's interaction.
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05/02/25
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Some argue that for something to be a true agent, it must be close to artificial general intelligence (AGI), capable of learning and working independently over time.
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a16z Cast
05/02/25
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AI agents are often defined as systems that perform complex planning and interact with external systems, but this definition overlaps with many current language models.
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a16z Cast
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The term 'agent' may be overloaded and poorly defined, leading to confusion in the market about what constitutes an actual agent.
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05/02/25
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The definition of an agent may evolve as we explore the capabilities of AI, particularly in how they interact with users and perform tasks.
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All agents share a common element: reasoning and decision-making, which can be likened to a multi-step language model chain with a dynamic decision tree.
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The marketing narrative around agents often suggests they can replace human workers, which can lead to inflated pricing models for AI software.
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While some jobs may be partially replaced by AI agents, many roles still require human creativity and decision-making, indicating that complete replacement is unlikely.
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a16z Cast
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AI agents are often marketed as capable of replacing human workers, but the reality is that they may only enhance productivity rather than fully replace jobs.
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The idea of agents as human replacements is a misconception; many existing systems, like customer support automation, have been in place for years without fully replacing human roles.
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a16z Cast
05/02/25
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The confusion around agents stems from the expectation that AI will develop human-like intent and creativity, which may not be theoretically possible.
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05/02/25
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The concept of agents includes both those that replace human tasks and those that operate as low-level system processes, complicating the definition further.
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The distinction between agents and functions is blurred, as both can involve multiple functions with language models in the middle, making them appear similar from an external perspective.
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The future of AI may involve new infrastructure and development tools that leverage the unique characteristics of AI models, differentiating them from traditional functions.
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Humans may be viewed as functions in a system, similar to AI agents, especially if we consider the potential for direct integration with technology.
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AI agents can perform important creative work, even in roles like grocery store checkout clerks, which may seem simple but require significant skill.
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When introducing a new product category, initial pricing often reflects the status quo, but as competition increases, prices tend to align with what competitors charge.
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Most AI applications today, particularly those labeled as AI agents, often have low operational costs due to their reliance on software and LLMs, which are becoming cheaper over time.
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Value-based pricing is common in AI applications, where vendors charge based on the perceived savings or value they provide to customers, rather than just margins.
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Many buyers of AI solutions are sophisticated and understand that the underlying technology is often simple, leading them to question the true costs of running these systems.
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Pricing strategies for AI agents can vary; if the service is used by humans, it may follow a per-user pricing model, while machine-to-machine services might adopt usage-based pricing.
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AI companies often struggle to define the value they generate, leading to uncertain pricing strategies as they experiment with different models.
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The integration of AI agents into consumer services is complicated by data silos and companies' reluctance to provide automated access to their services, which could limit agent deployment.
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The future of AI agents may involve them being able to access and interact with data traditionally reserved for humans, such as logging into websites or executing commands on servers.
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a16z Cast
05/02/25
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The perception of AI as either a utopia or dystopia is a false dichotomy; instead, AI should be viewed as a normal technology that integrates into everyday life, similar to electricity or the internet.