Agentic AI
Agentic AI works toward a goal on its own over several steps: it plans, uses tools like files, search or code, checks the result and decides what to do next, instead of answering once.
Select any words here to ask your Maestro about them.
An agent gets each step right 95% of the time. A task has 10 steps. What's the chance it gets all 10 right?
What makes it agentic: it doesn't just generate text. An AI agent gets a goal, decides the next step, uses tools (files, search, code), looks at the result and decides again. The LLM does the thinking; the harness gives it the tools.
Agentic AI vs. generative AI: generative AI makes something when you ask: a paragraph, an image. Agentic AI uses that same ability to work over many steps toward a goal. Claude Code is one example.
What changes for you: you're no longer checking one answer, you're checking a process. The more steps, the more places something can go wrong without you noticing.
Practice it in When an agent did it, and in depth in the course Claude Code for Data Analysis.
How it's used
An agentic task, step by step
"How much did each store sell in October?"
- Searches the folder and opens october_sales.csvIt decides on its own which file to read.
- Writes and runs a script that totals by storeIt uses a tool: it runs code.
- marked: Sees that one store comes out blankIt looks at the result, like you would.
- Finds the store name spelled two ways and fixes itIt changes plans without being asked.
- Hands you the table and what it decidedWhat it decided is what you check.
When to look closer
"Task complete"
What the agent said
- marked: Task complete: report saved to report.xlsx
The agent says the task is done. Where would you look if something went wrong along the way?
Ask your Maestro about Agentic AI
It answers from the free course page closest to this word, the way it answers while you study.
You: What does "Agentic AI" mean, in plain words?
Your Maestro: I'll explain it with a case of yours: it sticks better than a definition. Which multi-step task at work would you hand an agent?
Asking about: Answers from the page "How do you know it's right?"
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Related terms
- AI agent
A program that pairs a language model with tools, such as terminal commands and files, to carry out a task in several steps: it reads its context, acts, looks at the result and repeats.
- Agent harness
The program that wraps a language model and makes it an agent: it gives the model tools, asks for your permission, keeps the session and decides what goes into its context.
- LLM (large language model)
An LLM is a program trained on huge amounts of text to continue a piece of text one chunk at a time: it works out which chunk is likeliest to come next and writes it. ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini all run on an LLM.
- Claude Code
Claude Code is Anthropic's AI agent that works on your computer: it reads your project's files, runs commands and makes changes over several steps, asking your permission for what matters. You use it from the terminal, the desktop app or editors like VS Code.