While the big tech giants are working on introducing AI ‘agents’ to the workforce, the growth of AI companion apps is causing concern
New tech: Friends apps have become more sophisticated. Illustration: Getty
In the world of workplace AI, everyone is talking about the new wave of ‘agentic’ technology. In plain English, it means AI programmes or bots that act more like humans in dealing with other bots or opening apps and filling out forms. They’re ‘agents’ that can act semi-autonomously and with less need for action-by-action prompts.
For example, Microsoft has recently launched an ‘agent’ feature in Teams, Word, PowerPoint and its 365 Copilot apps. The idea is that these can gradually start to do repetitive tasks in areas such as HR, administration and finance. They can already do basic things like accounting for delivery invoices or returns or reconciling financial statements.
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