What AI agents actually are and how to build one.
A working library of pillar posts on AI agents — what they are, how they work, how to build one, and how to pick a platform. Written by operators, not marketers.
What is an AI agent?
An AI agent is software that executes work autonomously — not a chatbot that answers questions. Here's what separates the two, and why it matters.
Read postAI agent vs chatbot vs assistant — the differences that matter
Three terms used interchangeably; three different things. A working definition for each, and how to pick the right one for the job.
Read postHow to build an AI agent — a practical guide
Step-by-step: define the goal, encode the process, wire the tools, deploy. What it takes to ship an AI agent that actually works in production.
Read postAI agents with memory — how it actually works
What does it mean for an AI agent to 'have memory'? Three kinds of memory, how they're implemented, and why ownership of memory is the difference between a rented agent and an owned one.
Read postHow AI agents work — inside the loop
The ReAct loop, tool use, planning, and observation. What's actually happening inside a working AI agent, written for non-engineers.
Read postThe best AI agents in 2026 — honest picks by use case
There is no single 'best AI agent platform.' There are several, each best at a specific thing. Here's our honest take by use case.
Read postAI agent examples by role — 20 concrete use cases
A practical catalog. For each role — recruiter, analyst, lawyer, sales rep, ops lead, and 15 more — a specific workflow an AI agent already automates today.
Read postAI agent pricing compared — what you actually pay in 2026
$20/mo to $200/mo, flat credits to effort-based, seat-based to usage-based. A breakdown of how the major AI agent platforms actually price — with the gotchas.
Read postOwned vs rented AI agents — why ownership matters
Most AI agents are rentals. You train them; the platform owns them. Here's why that matters, what ownership actually means, and how to evaluate.
Read postAI agents that build their own tools
Most AI agents need you to bring the stack — the CRM, the dashboards, the pipeline. Spawn agents build it. Here's what that actually looks like, with two concrete loops.
Read postPortable AI agents — why they matter and how to build one
A portable AI agent is one that moves with the expert — across jobs, across platforms, across teams. Here's what portability means technically, and why it's the defining question for the next generation of AI agents.
Read postReady to see it in practice?
Spawn an AI agent for the work that eats the most hours. First agent live in under an hour.