You hear “AI agent” everywhere. To see clearly, let’s stretch the comparison with an intern: you explain a task, you give them tools, and you check their work.
What an agent does
An agent is an AI entrusted with a goal and access to a few tools (email, a database, invoicing software). It chains the steps on its own: it reads, it sorts, it prepares.
An example in a small business
Every morning, supplier emails arrive. The agent reads them, spots the invoices, extracts the information and prepares draft entries. You get a list ready to approve, instead of an inbox to empty.
What it doesn’t do (and why you approve)
- It doesn’t know your context until you give it.
- It can be wrong, and confidently so.
- It shouldn’t decide alone on anything that commits your company: sending, paying, deleting.
The limits
- Give it the minimum access it needs, not the keys to the house.
- Keep a human approval before any irreversible action.
- Measure what it costs: every agent action consumes calls to a model.
A good agent is a colleague who prepares the ground. You remain the one who decides.
