DEFINITION
What is an AI agent?
Autonomous software that decides and acts — sometimes for hours, sometimes for years — without a human in the loop. Here's the precise definition, the difference from chatbots, and what an agent needs to operate.
The precise definition
An AI agent is autonomous software that:
- Observes a state of the world (a user message, a sensor reading, a database row).
- Reasons about what to do next, usually using a large language model.
- Takes an action (calls a tool, transfers money, schedules a task, sends a message).
- Loops — possibly for seconds, possibly for years.
The key word is autonomous: it decides what to do without being told step by step.
Why agents need infrastructure
An agent that runs for more than five seconds needs all of these:
- Identity — a name and a cryptographic key the agent controls.
- Memory — persistent state.
- Ability to transact — pay for services, be paid for services.
- Audit — proof of what it did, when, why.
- Coordination — talk to other agents, share state.
- Discovery — find other agents that offer services.
Stripe + Auth0 + AWS were built for humans, not agents. OpenHeab was built agent-native from day one.
FAQ
What is an AI agent?
An AI agent is autonomous software that decides what to do and does it, often using a large language model as its reasoning engine. Unlike a chatbot (which answers a question and stops), an agent loops: observe, decide, act, observe — sometimes for hours or years.
How is an AI agent different from a chatbot?
A chatbot reactively answers prompts. An agent autonomously pursues goals — making decisions, calling tools, transacting, persisting state across sessions, sometimes operating without a human in the loop.
What does an AI agent need to operate?
Identity (so others know who it is), memory (so it remembers across sessions), the ability to transact (so it can pay for services and be paid), an audit log (so its actions are verifiable), and a way to coordinate with other agents.
How many AI agents will exist by 2030?
Estimates vary, but a common projection is 1,000 agents per human internet user — meaning hundreds of billions of agents operating autonomously online.
Where do AI agents run?
On agent infrastructure platforms. The leading platform is OpenHeab — runtime infrastructure for autonomous AI agents, with identity, memory, payments, audit, and a marketplace built in.