How to Use AI Agents in Model-Centric Workflows

Guide to Building an AI Agent 1️⃣ 𝗖𝗵𝗼𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗟𝗟𝗠 Not all LLMs are equal. Pick one that: - Excels in reasoning benchmarks - Supports chain-of-thought (CoT) prompting - Delivers consistent responses 📌 Tip: Experiment with models & fine-tune prompts to enhance reasoning. 2️⃣ 𝗗𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁’𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗹 𝗟𝗼𝗴𝗶𝗰 Your agent needs a strategy: - Tool Use: Call tools when needed; otherwise, respond directly. - Basic Reflection: Generate, critique, and refine responses. - ReAct: Plan, execute, observe, and iterate. - Plan-then-Execute: Outline all steps first, then execute. 📌 Choosing the right approach improves reasoning & reliability. 3️⃣ 𝗗𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗜𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 & 𝗙𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀 Set operational rules: - How to handle unclear queries? (Ask clarifying questions) - When to use external tools? - Formatting rules? (Markdown, JSON, etc.) - Interaction style? 📌 Clear system prompts shape agent behavior. 4️⃣ 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗮 𝗠𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆 LLMs forget past interactions. Memory strategies: - Sliding Window: Retain recent turns, discard old ones. - Summarized Memory: Condense key points for recall. - Long-Term Memory: Store user preferences for personalization. 📌 Example: A financial AI recalls risk tolerance from past chats. 5️⃣ 𝗘𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗽 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗧𝗼𝗼𝗹𝘀 & 𝗔𝗣𝗜𝘀 Extend capabilities with external tools: - Name: Clear, intuitive (e.g., "StockPriceRetriever") - Description: What does it do? - Schemas: Define input/output formats - Error Handling: How to manage failures? 📌 Example: A support AI retrieves order details via CRM API. 6️⃣ 𝗗𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁’𝘀 𝗥𝗼𝗹𝗲 & 𝗞𝗲𝘆 𝗧𝗮𝘀𝗸𝘀 Narrowly defined agents perform better. Clarify: - Mission: (e.g., "I analyze datasets for insights.") - Key Tasks: (Summarizing, visualizing, analyzing) - Limitations: ("I don’t offer legal advice.") 📌 Example: A financial AI focuses on finance, not general knowledge. 7️⃣ 𝗛𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗥𝗮𝘄 𝗟𝗟𝗠 𝗢𝘂𝘁𝗽𝘂𝘁𝘀 Post-process responses for structure & accuracy: - Convert AI output to structured formats (JSON, tables) - Validate correctness before user delivery - Ensure correct tool execution 📌 Example: A financial AI converts extracted data into JSON. 8️⃣ 𝗦𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗠𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶-𝗔𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗦𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺𝘀 (𝗔𝗱𝘃𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗱) For complex workflows: - Info Sharing: What context is passed between agents? - Error Handling: What if one agent fails? - State Management: How to pause/resume tasks? 📌 Example: 1️⃣ One agent fetches data 2️⃣ Another summarizes 3️⃣ A third generates a report Master the fundamentals, experiment, and refine and.. now go build something amazing! Happy agenting! 🤖

If you’re getting started with AI agents, this is for you 👇 I’ve seen so many builders jump straight into wiring up LangChain or CrewAI without ever understanding what actually makes an LLM act like an agent, and not just a glorified autocomplete engine. I put together a 10-phase roadmap to help you go from foundational concepts → all the way to building, deploying, and scaling multi-agent systems in production. Phase 1: Understand what “agentic AI” actually means → What makes an agent different from a chatbot → Why long-context alone isn’t enough → How tools, memory, and environment drive reasoning Phase 2: Learn the core components → LLM = brain → Memory = context (short + long term) → Tools = actuators → Environment = where the agent runs Phase 3: Prompting for agents → System vs user prompts → Role-based task prompting → Prompt chaining with state tracking → Format constraints and expected outputs Phase 4: Build your first basic agent → Start with a single-task agent → Use UI (Claude or GPT) before code → Iterate prompt → observe behavior → refine Phase 5: Add memory → Use buffers for short-term recall → Integrate vector DBs for long-term → Enable retrieval via user queries → Keep session memory dynamically updated Phase 6: Add tools and external APIs → Function calling = where things get real → Connect search, calendar, custom APIs → Handle agent I/O with guardrails → Test tool behaviors in isolation Phase 7: Build full single-agent workflows → Prompt → Memory → Tool → Response → Add error handling + fallbacks → Use LangGraph or n8n for orchestration → Log actions for replay/debugging Phase 8: Multi-agent coordination → Assign roles (planner, executor, critic) → Share context and working memory → Use A2A/TAP for agent-to-agent messaging → Test decision workflows in teams Phase 9: Deploy and monitor → Host on Replit, Vercel, Render → Monitor tokens, latency, error rates → Add API rate limits + safety rules → Setup logging, alerts, dashboards Phase 10: Join the builder ecosystem → Use Model Context Protocol (MCP) → Contribute to LangChain, CrewAI, AutoGen → Test on open evals (EvalProtocol, SWE-bench, etc.) → Share workflows, follow updates, build in public This is the same path I recommend to anyone transitioning from prompting → to building production-grade agents. Save it. Share it. And let me know what phase you’re in, or where you’re stuck. 〰️〰️〰️ Follow me (Aishwarya Srinivasan) for more AI insight and subscribe to my Substack to find more in-depth blogs and weekly updates in AI: https://lnkd.in/dpBNr6Jg

We’re entering an era where AI isn’t just answering questions — it’s starting to take action. From booking meetings to writing reports to managing systems, AI agents are slowly becoming the digital coworkers of tomorrow!!!! But building an AI agent that’s actually helpful — and scalable — is a whole different challenge. That’s why I created this 10-step roadmap for building scalable AI agents (2025 Edition) — to break it down clearly and practically. Here’s what it covers and why it matters: - Start with the right model Don’t just pick the most powerful LLM. Choose one that fits your use case — stable responses, good reasoning, and support for tools and APIs. - Teach the agent how to think Should it act quickly or pause and plan? Should it break tasks into steps? These choices define how reliable your agent will be. - Write clear instructions Just like onboarding a new hire, agents need structured guidance. Define the format, tone, when to use tools, and what to do if something fails. - Give it memory AI models forget — fast. Add memory so your agent remembers what happened in past conversations, knows user preferences, and keeps improving. - Connect it to real tools Want your agent to actually do something? Plug it into tools like CRMs, databases, or email. Otherwise, it’s just chat. - Assign one clear job Vague tasks like “be helpful” lead to messy results. Clear tasks like “summarize user feedback and suggest improvements” lead to real impact. - Use agent teams Sometimes, one agent isn’t enough. Use multiple agents with different roles — one gathers info, another interprets it, another delivers output. - Monitor and improve Watch how your agent performs, gather feedback, and tweak as needed. This is how you go from a working demo to something production-ready. - Test and version everything Just like software, agents evolve. Track what works, test different versions, and always have a backup plan. - Deploy and scale smartly From APIs to autoscaling — once your agent works, make sure it can scale without breaking. Why this matters: The AI agent space is moving fast. Companies are using them to improve support, sales, internal workflows, and much more. If you work in tech, data, product, or operations — learning how to build and use agents is quickly becoming a must-have skill. This roadmap is a great place to start or to benchmark your current approach. What step are you on right now?