AI Engineering··5 min
AI Agents vs. Workflows
When to reach for an autonomous agent and when a deterministic workflow is the better, cheaper, safer choice.
By Vijay Singh Rajput
Agents are exciting. Workflows are boring. In production, boring usually wins — until it doesn't.
The honest heuristic
If the steps are known, use a workflow. If the steps must be discovered at runtime, consider an agent. Most business automation is the former dressed up as the latter.
- Deterministic path known → workflow.
- Open-ended reasoning required → agent.
- High cost of error → workflow with AI in the loop, not in control.
The best systems combine both: a deterministic backbone with narrow, well-bounded AI decisions inside it.