Meet the Minds Behind Modern AI — 8 Types of Intelligent Agents Explained

Author(s): Poojan Vig

Originally published on Towards AI.

Ever wonder what kind of ‘brain’ switches on your smart lights, queues the perfect playlist, adjusts the thermostat, and reroutes your commute — all in an instant.Those invisible brains are AI agents — software entities that constantly sense, reason, and act for you, ranging from rule‑based reflex loops to deep‑learning systems that predict your next move.

Understanding the type of agent behind a feature tells you how smart it really is, how safe it can be, and what kind of data or compute bill comes with it. In the next few minutes we’ll speed‑run through eight agent archetypes that power everything from motion‑sensor lights to autonomous cars.

Think of an AI agent as your invisible digital butler — it watches its surroundings, thinks about what it sees, and takes action to get things done. These autonomous helpers form a closed-loop system that’s constantly cycling through sense → think → act, whether they’re adjusting your home’s temperature or navigating a self-driving car through traffic.

Before diving into any AI agents, it helps to use what AI textbook rock stars Russell & Norvig call the PEAS framework — Performance, Environment, Actuators, Sensors. Think of it as the essential ingredients list before you start cooking up… Read the full blog for free on Medium.

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Published via Towards AI