PlainAgent / AI agent vs chatbot
Guide · BasicsAI agent vs chatbot
A chatbot talks. An agent does. In practice it's a spectrum, and the right choice depends on whether your problem ends with an answer or with an action.
| Chatbot | Agent | |
|---|---|---|
| Starts when | Someone sends a message | A message, an event, or a schedule |
| Output | An answer | An action plus a record of it |
| Tools | Usually knowledge search only | Several: lookups, drafts, updates |
| Main risk | Wrong answers | Wrong actions |
| Start with | FAQ or support bot | Triage, extraction, research |
Quick test
- If success is "the person got the right answer": build a chatbot. Chatbot guide.
- If success is "the right thing happened in another app": build an agent. Agent guide.
- If both: build the chatbot first, then add one action at a time.
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