Are AI Agents the Future? - The Weekly #18
AI Agents are touted to accelerate our use of practical AI, but there's some way to go yet.
Jared Spataro, chief marketing officer of AI at Work at Microsoft
It is thought in many circles that AI Agents will accelerate our practical use of AI beyond what we have seen with simple chatbots. However, discussions at The Wall Street Journal's CIO Network Summit found that there has been a cautious adoption of AI agents by businesses with 61% are experimenting with AI, but 21% are not using it, with reliability and security being the main detractors.
It's clear that many of the leading software companies are making significant bets on AI agents (looking at you, Salesforce), but it seems there is some way to go before customers start paying that investment off.
Need a refresher on what AI Agents are? Take a look at a previous article I wrote on them.
Simon Cooper
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Curated News
Indian Communication Group Launches AI Agents
Gupshup, a Mumbai-based conversational AI platform, has introduced a library of 15 pre-built and customizable AI agents. These agents leverage large language models (LLMs) to manage complex tasks beyond basic chat interactions.
Workday Launches Its Agent System of Record
At the same time as Workday announced layoffs of 1,750 employees (about 8.5% of its workforce), it also announced its foray into the world of AI agents with its own Agent System of Record. The platform is designed to manage artificial intelligence (AI) agents within Workday and third-party platforms. This initiative aims to help businesses optimize their digital workforce by ensuring efficient and secure AI integration. The system offers centralized management, streamlined onboarding, and compliance support for AI agents, enabling them to perform tasks such as contract analysis, payroll data validation, and assistance in financial auditing.
Lyzr Launches A New Course For AI Agents
Lyzr has joined forces with a Harvard undergraduate to launch what they’re calling the first-ever course dedicated to democratizing AI adoption with AI agents. In simple terms, this initiative is all about breaking down the complexities of AI so that anyone—be it a business professional or a curious beginner—can understand and leverage the power of AI agents in everyday tasks. The course promises a hands-on, practical approach, aiming to bridge the gap between cutting-edge AI technology and its real-world applications, making advanced tools accessible to everyone.
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Thanks for reading, and see you next Friday.
Simon,
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