Module 1 of 3

What Agents Do

What distinguishes an agent from a chatbot, how the loop works, and where the autonomy sits

Most vendor "agent" products are not agents in any meaningful structural sense. This module uses the mechanics of agency (the loop, tool calling, the autonomy spectrum) as a lens for commercial due diligence: identifying agent-washing, understanding why autonomous action is categorically different from text generation in terms of business risk, and asking the questions that reveal what you are buying.

AI Agent Adoption
  • ~50 mins
  • 3 lessons
  • professional
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What you'll learn

  • Identify agent-washing: the questions that reveal whether a product's autonomy claims are structural or marketing
  • Explain why a system that takes real-world actions creates a categorically different risk and governance profile than one that generates text, and what that means before you sign a contract
  • Place any "agent" product accurately on the autonomy spectrum using structural rather than vendor criteria
  • Articulate the business risk gradient from chatbot to autonomous agent and match the appropriate oversight level to each

Lessons in the Module

1 The Agent Loop 20–25 mins
2 Tool Calling and Real-World Action 20–25 mins
3 The Autonomy Spectrum in Practice 20–25 mins
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