LLMs (like ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Claude) are the foundation of many AI applications.
They are excellent at generating and editing text based on their training data.
Key Traits of LLMs
Limited Knowledge of Proprietary Information. They do not have access to personal or internal company data (e.g., a personal calendar).
Passive. They require a human prompt to produce an output.
Understanding AI Workflows (Level 2):
AI workflows build on LLMs by allowing them to interact with external tools and data.
Humans define a predefined path or "control logic" for the LLM to follow.
The LLM executes steps in this predefined path, which can involve retrieving information or using other models (e.g., accessing a calendar, using a weather API, employing a text-to-audio model).
Key Trait of AI Workflows:
They can only follow the predefined paths set by humans. If a follow-up question requires information or an action outside of that defined path, the workflow will fail.
Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG): Introduced as a "fancy term" for a process that helps AI models look things up before answering (e.g., accessing a calendar or weather service). RAG is presented as a type of AI workflow.
Understanding AI Agents (Level 3):
AI agents represent a significant advancement from workflows because the LLM becomes the decision-maker. Instead of following a predefined path, the AI agent is given a goal.
Key Traits of AI Agents:
Reasoning: The AI agent autonomously determines the best approach to achieve the goal, thinking about the necessary steps and tools.
Acting: The AI agent takes action using tools to execute its plan.
Iterating: AI agents can observe their interim results and autonomously decide if adjustments or repetitions of steps are needed to improve the output and meet the goal. This replaces the human trial-and-error process seen in workflows.
The Defining Change: The human decision-maker in a workflow is replaced by an LLM.
ReAct Framework: Mentioned as the "most common configuration" for AI agents because it aligns with the core functions of Reasoning and Acting.