The series · scheduled posts publish at 9am IST on weekdays
Agentic AI, written from work I actually do
Everything here is for people who have to live with agentic AI without wanting to build it. Every job in these posts runs on my own machine before it is described, and every number comes from that run rather than from a vendor's page.
Somebody is selling you an AI agent, or your company has told you to start using one, or you are the person everybody asks what the word means. This series is for all three of you.
It is not written for people who want to build and resell agents. There is plenty of that elsewhere.
Start here
the definitional postsWhat agentic AI means when a small business says it
What is agentic AI? It decides something while it runs, instead of waiting for your next instruction. Shown on 3 real quotes, including what it caught unasked.
September 5, 2026 · 7 min read · owns what is agentic ai
Is ChatGPT an AI agent? The line that stops the salesman
Is ChatGPT an AI agent? No, and the difference matters the moment somebody is selling you one. AI assistant vs AI agent, shown with a real job on a real folder.
September 4, 2026 · 6 min read · owns ai assistant vs ai agent
Every post in the series
newest first
AI agent mistakes: the check that caught my first error
One retained AI report counted six business days as seven. See the check that caught it, the corrected report, and a safer review habit.
What an AI agent costs per month: real numbers, not the demo's
What an AI agent costs per month, shown with 1 observed Claude week. Separate usage, billing, and API pricing before you accept a quote.
AI agent examples that are boring on purpose
AI agent examples that work: begin with one recurring pile, a reviewable local result, an approval line, and a person who checks the source.
Do you really need an AI agent? The reversibility test
Do you need an AI agent? Use the reversibility test to decide when a job needs judgement, a plain automation, or a person’s approval.
AI employee: what the phrase hides
AI employee explained in plain language: the files it may read, drafts it may write, outside actions it must not take, and the human check that stays.
What is Claude Code? A beginner's guide
What is Claude Code? Learn how it works with a folder you choose, one plain-English job, and a careful check of every file it makes.
Claude vs ChatGPT for work: choose a safe route
ChatGPT and Claude chats document file attachments. Claude Code, Codex, and Cowork document project or connected-folder work with different controls.
Your boss said "use AI". The one job to start with
AI training for employees works best on a real drafting job: sort messages, cite every number, leave gaps blank, and check each source before sending.
The cold email that says "AI agent": 4 questions before you reply
You cannot spot an AI agent scam from the email. 4 questions that grade the offer instead of the sender, and the rule that caught one in time.
What agentic AI means when a small business says it
What is agentic AI? It decides something while it runs, instead of waiting for your next instruction. Shown on 3 real quotes, including what it caught unasked.
Is ChatGPT an AI agent? The line that stops the salesman
Is ChatGPT an AI agent? No, and the difference matters the moment somebody is selling you one. AI assistant vs AI agent, shown with a real job on a real folder.
Scheduled posts appear here at 9am IST on weekdays. This list shows each post once its date arrives, with the newest one first.
The courses these come from
one out now, one on the wayClaude Code: build and ship real things
Out now. Starts from nothing installed and no coding experience, and ends with a project you built, deployed and keep.
For the person who would rather do than read
Agentic AI Explained: how AI agents actually work
Not out yet. Two hours, no code, and no assumption that you have ever opened a terminal. Join the list and I will email you once, on the day it opens.
For the person who has to understand rather than build
And before either of them, Anthropic's Claude 101. It works with a Claude account on any plan, including Free. A few lessons cover paid features, so you may not be able to try every exercise hands-on with a Free account.
Where do you stand?
15 short situations about handing a job to an AI tool. In each one you pick what you would do next.
- ▸Whether you sized the job right
- ▸What you handed over
- ▸How you checked what came back
- ▸When you stopped
About 5 minutes. You see your score, your weakest area and the reasoning behind every answer before anybody asks you for an address.
Questions people ask next
answered in one line eachWhere should I start with AI agents?
Start with the 2 posts at the top of this page. The first separates an assistant from an agent, which is the line most sales pitches blur. The second shows an agent deciding something on a real job. After those 2, the rest of the series reads in any order you like.
Do I need to know how to code to use AI agents?
No. Every job in this series runs on an ordinary Mac and none of it involves writing code. What you do need is the willingness to read what the tool did and check it, which is the same thing you already do with work anybody else hands back to you.
Are AI agents worth it for a small business?
For some jobs. The work that pays back is the job you repeat, that follows a rule you could write down, and that somebody is doing by hand today. Anything you do once, or that needs a judgment call every time, stays cheaper as a tool you prompt yourself.
How often does a new post come out?
Scheduled posts publish at 9am IST on weekdays. Each post still runs the job on my own machine before it is written, and this page shows it only once its scheduled date arrives.