Building Intelligent AI Agents: Exploring Function Calling, RAG, and ReACT with Llama Index
Last Updated on December 26, 2024 by Editorial Team
Author(s): Isuru Lakshan Ekanayaka
Originally published on Towards AI.
This member-only story is on us. Upgrade to access all of Medium.
In the rapidly evolving landscape of artificial intelligence, the past few years have witnessed unprecedented advancements in large language models (LLMs), diffusion models, and multimodal architectures. Among these breakthroughs, agentic workflows have emerged as a pivotal area driving significant progress. This comprehensive guide delves deep into the implementation of agentic workflows using the Llama Index library, exploring function calling, agent runners, Agentic Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG), and ReACT agents. Whether you’re an AI enthusiast, developer, or data scientist, this guide will equip you with the knowledge and practical insights to harness the full potential of agentic workflows.
Introduction to Agentic WorkflowsPrerequisitesSetting Up the EnvironmentFunction Calling with Llama IndexFunction Calling Agents and Agent RunnersAgentic Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG)ReACT Agents: Building a Search AssistantRoadmap and Next StepsConclusionAdditional Resources
Agentic workflows represent a paradigm where AI models operate with a degree of autonomy, enabling them to plan, reason, and execute tasks akin to human decision-making. This approach leverages various components such as function calling, planning mechanisms, and memory systems to create intelligent agents capable of complex interactions and problem-solving.
Early in 2023, Andrew W., the founder of Coursera and a notable figure in deep learning, emphasized… Read the full blog for free on Medium.
Join thousands of data leaders on the AI newsletter. Join over 80,000 subscribers and keep up to date with the latest developments in AI. From research to projects and ideas. If you are building an AI startup, an AI-related product, or a service, we invite you to consider becoming a sponsor.
Published via Towards AI
Take our 90+ lesson From Beginner to Advanced LLM Developer Certification: From choosing a project to deploying a working product this is the most comprehensive and practical LLM course out there!
Towards AI has published Building LLMs for Production—our 470+ page guide to mastering LLMs with practical projects and expert insights!

Discover Your Dream AI Career at Towards AI Jobs
Towards AI has built a jobs board tailored specifically to Machine Learning and Data Science Jobs and Skills. Our software searches for live AI jobs each hour, labels and categorises them and makes them easily searchable. Explore over 40,000 live jobs today with Towards AI Jobs!
Note: Content contains the views of the contributing authors and not Towards AI.