Glossary
What Is an Agentic AI Assistant?
An agentic AI assistant takes autonomous action in external systems — not just responds to prompts. Here's what it means, how it works, and why the distinction matters.
Definition
Agentic AI assistant
An AI system that takes autonomous action in external systems — calendar, email, web, messaging — on behalf of a user, rather than just generating text responses. An agentic AI assistant operates persistently, executes multi-step tasks, and can act without being prompted for every individual step.
Agentic AI vs. conversational AI
The distinction between agentic and conversational AI is the most important category divide in the current AI landscape — and it's one that most marketing language obscures.
| Dimension | Conversational AI (chatbot) | Agentic AI assistant |
|---|---|---|
| Output | Text | Real-world actions |
| Operation | Session-bound | Persistent, 24/7 |
| Tool access | None or limited | Email, calendar, web, etc. |
| Execution | You do it | It does it |
What makes an AI assistant "agentic"?
Three characteristics define agentic behavior in AI systems:
1. Tool access. An agentic AI has real connections to external systems — your calendar, email, web search, messaging. It doesn't describe what it would do; it does it through these integrations.
2. Persistent operation. Conversational AI exists only within a session. Agentic AI operates continuously — it can execute tasks scheduled for future times, monitor for events, and take action while you're offline.
3. Multi-step execution. Agentic AI can decompose a goal into steps and execute them in sequence without requiring human input at each stage. You specify the outcome; the agent handles the steps.
Examples of agentic AI assistants
Deputy is a consumer-facing agentic AI assistant. It operates via SMS, connects to calendar, email, and web systems, runs 24/7, and executes tasks — follow-ups, research, scheduling, reminders — without requiring a user to prompt each step individually.
Lindy is a business-facing agentic AI, focused on automating defined business workflows across CRM, email, and Slack.
Tools like ChatGPT and Claude are not agentic AI assistants in the full sense — they generate text within a session window and do not take autonomous action in external systems.
Deputy is an agentic AI assistant that lives in your texts.
Free to start, pay only when it works for you.
Get Started Free →FAQ
What is an agentic AI assistant?
An agentic AI assistant is an AI system that takes autonomous action in external systems — calendar, email, web, messaging — on behalf of a user, rather than just generating text responses. It operates persistently, executes multi-step tasks, and can act without being prompted for every individual step.
How is an agentic AI assistant different from a chatbot?
A chatbot generates text responses within a conversation session. An agentic AI assistant executes real-world actions in connected systems and can operate autonomously between sessions. Chatbots describe what to do; agentic assistants do it.
What is an example of an agentic AI assistant?
Deputy is an example of an agentic AI assistant. It operates via SMS, takes autonomous action in calendar, email, and web systems, runs 24/7, and executes tasks without requiring a user to prompt each step individually.
Related: