Agentic AI vs Generative AI: What’s Next for AI in 2025?

Let me take you back to 2023.

That was the year AI went from hype to reality and became a part of daily life. We were all using it to write content, create art, and even code.

At the time, Generative AI was the breakthrough that made everyone feel like a creative genius.

Source: Generative AI

But here’s the thing: that was just a warm-up!

See, we humans have a habit of pushing boundaries.

First, we built AI to assist us, then we made it creative, and now? We want it to THINK. Strategize. Take action on its own.

That’s where Agentic AI enters the scene.

Soon, you won’t have to worry about strategy or execution — Agentic AI will handle it all, autonomously.

It’s engineered to act with intent, making decisions on everything from the smallest tasks to the biggest-picture plans.

Source: Giphy

Got goosebumps?

Yeah, that’s exactly where things are headed.

TBH, if Gen AI was the spark, Agentic AI is the wildfire. And trust me, you’ll want to keep up.

Source: Giphy

So, it all started gaining real attention toward the end of 2024, just as 2025 was about to kick off.

Even our execs started buzzing about it in early December during daily meetings, getting the ball rolling. Now that we’ve got a real grip on it, I’m here to fill you in on all the details.

Let’s dive into what Agentic AI vs Generative AI really means.

What Is Agentic AI?

If you’re expecting some hardcore definition here, that won’t be the case.

See, I’m not here to bore you with jargon.

While researching Agentic AI, I couldn’t find anything more compelling than a quote from Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella.

She sums it up perfectly:

‘AI agents will become the primary way we interact with computers in the future. They will be able to understand our needs and preferences, and proactively help us with tasks and decision making.’

Understanding Agentic AI (better) helps us look at the evolution of AI.

Unlike traditional AI that waits for your command (like asking Siri to set a reminder), Agentic AI is proactive and autonomous.

That’s why it falls squarely within the third wave of AI.

This isn’t about just generating text or images like in generative AI; it’s about creating AI that can act independently.

In fact, think of it like having a personal assistant who anticipates your needs, learns your preferences, and gets things done without you having to spell everything out.

To make it clearer, imagine a system of AI agents that doesn’t just answer your emails but prioritizes them, drafts responses, and schedules meetings based on your habits.

This marks a major shift from passive tools to active partners, capable of independent thought and action.

And yes, this raises questions like how much autonomy AI should have. Where do we draw the line? That’s the controversy brewing in the tech world.

How Is Agentic AI Different From Generative AI?

Source: Giphy

Now, let’s crack the code on what is agentic AI vs generative AI.

It’ll set the stage for why it’s so important to get familiar with the Agentic AI concept and start using it.

Basically, Generative AI and Agentic AI are like two siblings with very different personalities. 

Generative AI is the creative one that responds to prompts and instructions.

But Agentic AI?

It’s the doer! It doesn’t just talk; it acts.

Didn’t get it? Let’s make it easier.

Gen AI, like GPT-3 or DALL-E, is designed to create. It generates text, images, or other media based on patterns learned from large datasets.

Its power lies in its ability to mimic human creativity, be it writing articles, generating art, or creating code.

However, generative AI lacks one crucial feature: autonomy. It can generate outputs, but it doesn’t make decisions or take independent actions.

Now, Agentic AI?

That’s where things get interesting.

Agentic AI uses independent AI agents that work together to complete tasks and make decisions.

These agents learn from experience, adjusting based on the data they collect and the environment they operate in.

For example, let’s say you’ve set up an AI agent in a smart home.

Source: Giphy

A generative AI might respond to a request like, ‘Turn on the lights,’ but it won’t anticipate anything beyond that.

It doesn’t know if you’re hosting guests or if the lights should be dimmed for a movie night.

An Agentic AI system, however, could learn from your behavior and adapt over time.

It might decide to not only turn on the lights but also adjust the temperature and queue up your favorite playlist, all based on your previous habits.

To reiterate, it’s proactive, not reactive.

Workflow

In terms of workflow, here’s how it plays out:

Generative AI Input → Process → Output You ask and Gen AI delivers. Agentic AI Observe → Learn → Act → Adapt Agentic AI sees the problem, figures out the solution, takes action, AND improves over time.

While generative AI creates in isolation, agentic AI operates in a loop of continuous learning, adaptation, and action.

It’s smarter, more proactive, and, over time, will require less and less human intervention.

But here’s the catch: Agentic AI hasn’t reached 100% perfection yet.

As Harrison Chase, CEO of LangChain, puts it:

‘I don’t think we’ve kind of nailed the right way to interact with these agent applications. I think a human in the loop is kind of still necessary because they’re not super reliable.’

So, it’s like training a new employee.

At first, you need to supervise them closely. Over time, they learn, adapt, and become more independent. 

So, now you know what Agentic AI vs. Generative AI is, right?

But the real question is — if you had to choose, which one comes out on top in the Agentic AI vs Generative AI debate?

Let’s explore!

Agentic AI Vs Generative AI – Which Is Better?

AI is exploding right now, and Agentic and Generative AI are right in the spotlight.

Honestly, we’re in the most exciting era of AI development, with these technologies fundamentally changing how industries operate.

Let’s get down to brass tacks.

When it comes to Agentic AI vs Generative AI, neither is inherently ‘better.’

Instead, it’s like choosing between coffee and tea — it all depends on your vibe.

Each one has its sweet spot, and deciding which one takes the crown boils down to the task at hand.

So, let’s break it down objectively.

Generative AI: When and Why It’s Better

Generative AI excels when you need creativity and output generation.

Whether it’s generating text, images, music, or code, gen-AI is the go-to tool. It works by analyzing vast datasets to produce high-quality outputs based on its training.

When to use Generative AI

• Content creation: Need a blog post, social media caption, or even a piece of code? Gen AI has you covered.
• Creative exploration: If you’re brainstorming ideas for a marketing campaign or designing a new product, tools like ChatGPT or DALL-E can spark creativity.
• Data augmentation: Generative AI can create synthetic data to train other AI models, especially when real-world data is scarce.

Example Scenario

Let’s say I’m working on an email marketing campaign.

First, I use ChatGPT to create personalized email copy, like drafting a series of welcome emails tailored to my audience.

Once I have the copy sorted, I move on to Copilot to design the visuals, like a product image that aligns with the message.

With more precision and detail in the description, the final result would be more aligned with your vision.

This way, I can easily create both the copy and visuals via Gen AI, ensuring everything fits together seamlessly for the campaign.

But it’s limited in one important way: it doesn’t think for itself. So, it can’t take action beyond your specific instructions.

Simply put, Gen AI can’t self-systematize tasks like sending emails automatically to the right recipients. That’s a dream fulfilled by Agentic AI.

Agentic AI – When and Why It’s Better

Agentic AI, on the other hand, is all about action.

It doesn’t just generate outputs; it takes initiative, makes decisions, and executes tasks autonomously.

It’s like giving an AI agent a sense of ownership over tasks.

When to use Agentic AI

• Task automation: From managing your calendar to handling customer service inquiries, Agentic AI can streamline repetitive tasks.
• Decision-making: Need to optimize supply chains and allocate resources? Agentic AI can analyze data, weigh options, and make informed decisions.
• Proactive assistance: It anticipates your needs, like reordering office supplies before you run out or suggesting the best time to schedule a meeting.

Example Scenario

So, let’s pick up where we left off.

You just built out an email marketing campaign using Generative AI.

ChatGPT helped you draft a killer welcome sequence, and Copilot whipped up the perfect visuals.

Everything’s aligned, clean, and conversion-ready.

But here’s the catch: You still had to manually jump between tools, tweak details, and make sure everything fits together.

Generative AI did the heavy lifting, but you were still in the driver’s seat, steering the whole process.

Now, let’s see how Agentic AI makes this way easier!

Instead of you stitching everything together, Agentic AI takes full control. It doesn’t just generate; it executes. It thinks, plans, and even acts on your behalf.

Let’s run that same email campaign, but this time with an Agentic AI setup.

So, Which Is Better?

With Generative AI, you’re the one making things happen. However, with Agentic AI, things happen for you.

You’re handing over tasks and letting the system think, act, and optimize, just like marketing on autopilot.

And that’s pretty awesome!

Interestingly, the most powerful systems combine elements of both.

For example, an AI assistant might use generative AI to draft an email (content creation) and agentic AI to schedule a meeting (task execution).

Cool, right?

[Bonus] The Best AI Content Tool I Actually Use (And Why)

If you are a digital marketer, content creator, blogger, or anyone who creates content, Content Gorilla AI is a game-changer.

I personally use it to streamline my AI content marketing, whether it’s:

• turning a video to blog AI,
• generating bulk content for social media, or
• (crafting an entire AI content strategy in minutes.

It even helps with Google keyword rankings, making sure every piece you publish drives traffic. 

Plus, the built-in AI social media post generator makes scheduling posts a breeze. If you’re looking for a smarter way to scale your content, this is the tool to have in your arsenal.

Try out its Free Blog Post Idea Generator right now and get amazing blog ideas in a jiffy!

Honestly, it’s a tool you just can’t miss!

Agentic AI In Action

When you start exploring Agentic AI, you’ll quickly run into tools like n8n and Relevance.ai.

n8n packs a lot of power under the hood, making it a favorite for advanced users who want complete control. But it can be a bit intimidating for beginners.

Source: n8n

On the other side, Relevance.ai is much more user-friendly, offering an easier entry point for anyone looking to build an Agentic AI without diving deep into code.

Source: Relevance.ai

As an example, let’s see Relevance.ai in action.

We’ll start with a simple problem:

What if you want an AI agent that generates and schedules social media captions for you — automatically?

With Relevance.ai, you can set up an Agentic AI system that:

✅ Generates social media captions based on your content.

✅ Optimizes them for engagement using AI-powered tweaks.

And the best part? You set it up once, and it works on autopilot.

Step #1: Create your AI agent

1. Go to Relevance.ai and click the blue ‘+ New Agent’ button in the top right corner.

2. Give your agent a name and describe its job.

For example: I named mine ‘Nova’, and its role is to create social media captions.

3. Go to ‘Core Instructions’ in the left sidebar.

Here’s where you tell it exactly what to do and how to do it. The clearer your instructions, the better the results.

Step #2: Run your agent

Once the instructions are saved, your agent will appear in your Relevance.ai dashboard.

1. Open your agent (Nova in my case).
2. Enter your requirements as an input.

3. Let the AI agent generate captions in a few seconds!

Note: It takes a slightly longer time because it performs different steps in the background.

Here’s the final output.

Step #3: Automate further

Here’s where the real magic happens. With Agentic AI, you can

• Create sub-agents to handle scheduling.
• Use the Flow Builder to systemize the entire process.
• Integrate with advanced tools to fully automate your workflow.

And that’s how I built an AI agent to generate social media captions and optimal posting times — in just a few steps.

And, that’s just the beginning!

Agentic AI can scale and automate even bigger tasks. Truly, the limit is your imagination.

TLDR; Agentic AI Vs Generative AI

Now that we’re here, let’s wrap up the debate of Agentic AI vs Generative AI.

FAQs

Q. What is Agentic AI vs Generative AI?

Agentic AI makes decisions and takes actions autonomously, like self-driving cars. Generative AI, on the contrary, creates content based on user input, such as writing text or creating images.

Q. Which one is more autonomous, Generative AI vs Agentic AI?

Agentic AI is highly autonomous, operating independently to make decisions and complete tasks. Gen AI requires human prompts to create content and isn’t fully autonomous.

Q. Can Generative AI make decisions on its own?

No, Generative AI relies on user (human) input to produce results. It doesn’t make decisions or take actions without a prompt from a human.

Q. Which AI is more useful for creative tasks?

Generative AI is the go-to for creative tasks, like generating text, images, and code, while Agentic AI focuses more on tasks requiring real-time decision-making.

Q. Are there any ethical concerns with Agentic AI?

Agentic AI offers incredible possibilities, but it also raises important questions about control and accountability, especially in high-stakes areas like healthcare and or autonomous vehicles.

Final Thoughts

Agentic AI is a big leap forward in the AI game, moving beyond just responding to commands to making its own decisions and taking action.

This has huge potential in fields ranging from healthcare to transportation, and even customer service.

When you compare Agentic AI vs Generative AI, you see they’re built for different things.

Generative AI creates content, while Agentic AI focuses on making things happen. 

The future of AI is looking bright, and who knows?

Maybe the next big thing won’t even need machines to do the work.

We’ll just think about it, and everything behind the scenes will get done automatically.

Now, THAT’s next-level convenience!