The Creative & The Assistant
Artificial intelligence is evolving rapidly, and two of the biggest developments in recent years are generative AI and agentic AI. While they both fall under the AI umbrella, they serve distinct functions. The easiest way to understand the difference is through an analogy: generative AI is like a live performer, constantly creating something new on the spot, while agentic AI is more like a personal assistant, handling tasks, making decisions, and taking action. These distinctions are easily conflated, overlooked or ignored in today's general discussions on AI. At DEDICO, we think it is vital for all stakeholders to understand, in general terms, the key differences in these technologies. If you need grounding first, see our LLMs starter guide and AI literacy primer. Let's go!
What is Generative AI?
Generative AI is designed to produce content, whether text, images, audio, or video. Tools like ChatGPT, Midjourney, and Stable Diffusion take a simple prompt and transform it into something new. Marketers might use generative AI to draft articles or use it to create graphics, or someone might use it to review a draft speech to suggest improvements.
Despite its capabilities, generative AI is limited. It doesn't understand the world as humans do; it simply generates responses based on patterns in data. It cannot make independent decisions or take action beyond producing content. While it can suggest an idea, it won't know whether that idea is relevant or valuable in a specific context. It also has the potential to replicate biases found in the data it has been trained on, leading to inaccuracies or unintended outcomes. At worst, it can reinforce harmful stereotypes such as gender or racial discrimination.
Looking at the example below, when asked to create an image of someone giving business advice, DALL-E, ChatGPT's image generator defaults to two men discussing business rather than offering a mixed-gender option or an option with women advisors. This reinforces unconscious gender bias, insofar as it is men who "do business", not women.
What is Agentic AI?
Agentic AI, on the other hand, goes beyond content creation. If generative AI is the artist on stage, agentic AI is the manager behind the scenes, ensuring everything runs smoothly. It doesn't just generate information, it can plan, reason, and execute tasks autonomously. This makes it particularly useful for handling processes that require more than just output.
Agentic AI is already being developed for automation, workflow optimisation, and decision-making. It can book meetings, manage emails, analyse large datasets, and optimise business processes. Unlike generative AI, which requires a direct prompt to function, agentic AI works towards goals independently, adapting to different situations as needed. It can make informed decisions based on real-world data rather than simply responding to requests.
It is important to note that there is ongoing debate about the definition of what an 'AI agent' is in the technology world and different companies see them as different things. For us the consumers of these developments, it doesn't really matter, when it comes down to it… "regardless of how they're defined, the agents are for helping complete tasks in an automated way with as little human interaction as possible." (Source: TechCrunch, 15 December 2024)
How Are They Different?
While generative AI and agentic AI rely on advanced machine learning models, their key distinction lies in autonomy or in other words, agency. Generative AI is great at producing content on demand but requires a user's input and cannot make decisions. Agentic AI, by contrast, is built to operate independently, making it better suited for process-driven tasks where decision-making is needed.
Generative AI's main advantage is its ability to enhance creativity by generating text, visuals, or music in seconds. It is already widely used in marketing, media, and design industries. Agentic AI, however, is still emerging and presents more significant challenges in development and implementation. Giving AI the ability to act autonomously raises ethical and security concerns, making it crucial to establish safeguards that ensure it operates safely and aligns with human objectives.
Where is AI Heading?
The distinction between generative and agentic AI is becoming more relevant as AI technology advances. Generative AI has already transformed industries by making content creation more accessible and efficient, while agentic AI is beginning to reshape how tasks are automated and managed.
The future will likely bring a fusion of both approaches, where AI is capable of not only generating content but also acting upon it intelligently. Imagine an AI that doesn't just draft an email but schedules the meeting, follows up on action points, and ensures the task is completed, all without human intervention. That is where AI is heading: combining creativity with the capability to create more autonomous and effective digital assistants. In effect, the AI has agency, hence its name, Agentic AI.
However, we are not there yet. As the graphic below shows, there is still a large agency gap between AI software and humans. Agentic AI technologies will narrow that gap, but it will take time and significant refinement in real-world practice.
Source: https://www.gartner.com/en/articles/intelligent-agent-in-ai
What Does it All Mean?
Understanding the difference between these two forms of AI helps you, dear reader, to better understand that changes are coming in terms of how organisations operate, and what will emerge in the workplace. Generative AI is useful for content and creative work, while agentic AI will be the next big frontier for automation and decision-making.
At DEDICO, we work with organisations and businesses in Ireland and beyond to give them a clear picture of how AI may be relevant to them while also addressing its limitations, ethical concerns, and cost. For professionals, understanding the advent and differences of AI is vital for ensuring they can embrace the changes its introduction to the workplace will bring.
Frequently asked questions
What is generative AI?
AI designed to produce new content (text, images, audio, video) based on a prompt.
What is agentic AI?
AI that plans, reasons and executes tasks autonomously rather than waiting for a direct prompt.
How are they different?
Generative AI creates on request; agentic AI acts toward goals with minimal human input.