IV · Stretch · 8 min
Lesson 17
Agents versus chat
A loop that acts is not the same as a conversation that drafts.
Chat answers. An agent loops: it plans, calls tools, reads the result, and continues until it hits a goal or a stop.
That loop is why agents feel magical and why they scare people who have seen a runaway script. The model is still proposing. The host is still executing. You are still the adult in the room — if the product lets you be.
Computer-use and browser agents that click GUIs are even looser. Prefer MCP tools with schemas over screenshot-guessing when you can. Schemas can be reviewed. Pixels are harder.
Check
You ask an agent to “handle my receipts.” It starts to submit expense reports. What failed?
Choose an answer to see why.