Professional article
The next and next but one level of artificial intelligence
Agentic AI refers to an advanced form of artificial intelligence that is able to make decisions autonomously and perform complex tasks without constant human supervision. These systems combine various AI techniques such as large language models, machine learning and reinforcement learning with the ability to use tools or create software themselves to operate in dynamic environments and continuously adapt. Different AI agents can interact with each other for different tasks and work together like a team of human colleagues.
In the future, Agentic AI systems will not only be able to use traditional software independently, but also supplement it and even replace it in parts (or even completely in the future). To perform tasks independently and more efficiently than before, Agentic AI autonomously programs, compiles and debugs new software modules and APIs.
We are still at the beginning
The simplest, still very limited form of agentic AI are the AI chatbots from ChatGPT & Co. that we are familiar with, in which humans are still the main point of interaction and decision-making. Agentic AI only unfolds its full effect in complex task and decision-making systems in business and production processes.
AI agents can largely replace humans for complex but systematic work routines by planning and implementing a series of related tasks with the help of work goals, digital information, software tools and environmental information and outputting the work results in a suitable environment.
Examples of agentic AI systems in business and production processes:
- Automatic approach, qualification and individualized maintenance of new customer contacts (e.g. from Conversica, Relevance AI)
- Automatic generation, editorial planning and playout of target group-specific marketing content (e.g. from Netcore Co-Market AI, Salesforce Agentforce)
- Automatic cybersecurity monitoring, threat detection and handling (e.g. from Darktrace, Vectra AI)
- Automatic IT infrastructure monitoring, problem & bottleneck detection and resolution (e.g. from Qovery)
Future effects and issues:
- Automation of complex processes:
Agentic AI can generally optimize a variety of business processes to an unprecedented extent by (partially) automating tasks such as sales, marketing, cybersecurity analysis, IT infrastructure management, supply chain management and health management and making them more efficient. To put it bluntly, we are talking about future “one-person companies” when AI agents are used instead of other colleagues. - Changing the world of work:
Even in the first phase of Agentic AI, the roles of employees can change significantly as they take on repetitive or complex tasks, leading to a redefinition of jobs and required skills. - Advanced human-machine interaction:
With the ability to understand and respond to natural language, agentic AI systems could act as personal assistants in corporate customer care as well as in internal processes and in the private sphere, responding individually to the needs of users. - Ethical and security challenges:
The autonomy of Agentic AI systems raises questions about control, accountability and potential risks, particularly with regard to unintentional actions or manipulation.
In the first step, Agentic AI systems network and supplement existing software applications, which already has far-reaching implications. In the next step, it is conceivable that agentic AI systems will not only supplement existing, traditional software, but even gradually replace it.
Agentic AI is eating traditional software
The phrase “Software is eating the world” was popularized by Marc Andreessen in a 2011 essay. It states that software companies are disrupting traditional industries and changing the economy. Over the last twenty years, this prediction has come true with companies such as Amazon, Netflix and Airbnb revolutionizing the retail, entertainment and hospitality industries respectively. Andreessen believed that software-driven innovation would completely reshape the way businesses operate and create value. This trend continues to this day, with advances in AI, cloud computing and mobile technology further accelerating the impact of software across industries and industry sectors.
Traditional software is usually rule-based and hard-coded. It can perform tasks reliably and efficiently, but is limited when it comes to unpredictable situations or adaptations. Agentic AI, on the other hand, can react independently to changes in its environment and adapt to new conditions without being explicitly programmed to do so.
The technological advances that are driving this development include, above all:
- Large language and multimodal models:
AI systems such as ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Lama and many more are in a global race to achieve Artificial General Intelligence (AGI). They are getting better and better at solving complex tasks by understanding not only natural language, but also documents, images, videos, etc. and generating new ones. The models are thus also continuing to improve the interactivity and flexibility of AI-supported applications. - Improvements in reinforcement learning and transfer learning:
These techniques enable AI to learn through experience and transfer knowledge from one task to another. - Autonomous decision-making systems and edge computing:
Agentic AI systems can run directly on devices (edge devices), where new data is generated and decisions are made in real time without having to rely on central servers. This enables faster and more data-intensive processing of tasks. - Integration into specific business processes:
Companies are increasingly integrating Agentic AI into their specific workflows, for further process optimization, for individual customer support or to increase efficiency in production and logistics.
Agentic AI offers several advantages that traditional software cannot realize to the same extent:
- Flexibility and adaptability:
Agentic AI can handle new requirements or unknown problems without the need for reprogramming or can carry out this reprogramming itself and put it into operation. - Cost savings:
Automation and self-adaptation largely eliminate the need for manual intervention during software maintenance and modernization. - Better scalability:
Agentic AI systems can automatically adapt to growing data volumes and more complex systems where traditional software needs to be upgraded or even replaced.
Agentic AI revolutionizes the software world that has grown into the cloud over decades since 2000 and takes it to a completely new level of automation. Agentic AI systems can not only supplement existing, traditional software and adapt it to specific company processes, but also gradually replace it, i.e. reprogram it in parts (in the future possibly even completely) and put it into operation independently: Agentic AI is eating traditional software.
This “end game” would completely disrupt the existing B2B software-as-a-service markets; if providers deploy new Agentic AI systems, they may not only displace other providers, but also cannibalize their own software solutions at some point. As software users, companies will no longer have to traditionally purchase external software, but can use Agentic AI and open source to build their own company-specific, individual, customized software solutions, run them in Docker containers on Kubernetes platforms and host them themselves again.
Outlook and challenges
The biggest challenges for the breakthrough of Agentic AI lie in the areas of data protection, energy efficiency and ethical control. While agentic AI could increasingly displace traditional software, the balance between automation and human control remains a key issue.
In summary, the phrase “Agentic AI is eating traditional software” means that the flexibility, efficiency and ability of Agentic AI to adapt dynamically to new environments is increasingly pushing traditional, static software back - and in extreme cases (still a long way in the future) even automatically replacing it with independent reprogramming during operation.
Numerous start-ups around the world are working on new Agentic AI systems. Secure these innovations directly from the start-up world for your own company: Use the right venture clienting format. We offer you our customized venture clienting services.
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