Ep 717: AI Agents in 2026 Explained: What They Are and When You Should Use Them (Start Here Series Vol 8)

AI Agents. AI Agents everywhere. 🪐For what seems like an eternity, we've been hearing about how AI agents were going to do everything. (In a good and bad way) But it never really happened. Until now. Today, AI agents are more important than ever. But... the questions are still legit plentiful.  ↳ What actually is an AI agent?  ↳ How do they work?  ↳ And what are the best ways to implement them? We'll tackle those questions and more, LIVE. AI Agents in 2026 Explained: What They Are and When You Should Use Them -- An Everyday AI Chat with Jordan Wilson (Starter Series, Vol 8)Newsletter: Sign up for our free daily newsletterMore on this Episode: Episode PageJoin the discussion on LinkedIn: Thoughts on this? Join the convo on LinkedIn and connect with other AI leaders.Upcoming Episodes: Check out the upcoming Everyday AI Livestream lineupWebsite: YourEverydayAI.comEmail The Show: [email protected] with Jordan on LinkedInTopics Covered in This Episode:AI Agents 2026: Definition & OverviewAI Agents vs Traditional AI ChatbotsCurrent State of AI Agents in EnterprisesAI Agent Adoption Statistics & Market TrendsKey Differences: Workflow Automation vs AI AgentsTypes of AI Agents: Task, Process, DecisionAutonomous vs Passive AI Agents ExplainedReal-World Risks: Security & Shadow AI ToolsAI Agent Use Case Decision FrameworkBest Practices: Starting AI Agent PilotsMeasuring AI Agent ROI & PerformanceBuilding Effective Agent EcosystemsTimestamps:00:00 "Join Our Inner Circle"05:29 "Understanding AI Agents"08:41 "Autonomous Agents as Workers"11:04 Agentic AI: Decisions and Challenges17:00 "Shadow AI Poses Growing Risks"18:00 "Agent Creativity and Loopholes"22:04 "Agentic Transactions and AI Workflows"25:27 "Getting Started with AI Agents"27:20 "Future Success in AI Agents"Keywords: AI agents, autonomous agents, agentic AI, multi-agent systems, AI agent definition, agentic models, autonomous systems, AI chatbots, AI-powered workflows, decision frameworks for AI agents, enterprise AI adoption, agent guardrails, AI task automation, passive agents, bounded autonomy, agent observability, agent traceability, agentic first workflow, AI delegation, sub-agents, tool-using AI,Send Everyday AI and Jordan a text message. (We can't reply back unless you leave contact info) Start Here ▶️Not sure where to start when it comes to AI? Start with our Start Here Series. You can listen to the first drop -- Episode 691 -- or get free access to our Inner Cricle community and all episodes: StartHereSeries.com Also, here's a link to the entire series on a Spotify playlist.