Agents in Artificial Intelligence

In artificial intelligence, an agent is a computer program or system that is

designed to perceive its environment, make decisions and take actions to
achieve a specific goal or set of goals. The agent operates autonomously,
meaning it is not directly controlled by a human operator.
Agents can be classified into different types based on their characteristics,
such as whether they are reactive or proactive, whether they have a fixed or
dynamic environment, and whether they are single or multi-agent systems.
Reactive agents are those that respond to immediate stimuli from their
environment and take actions based on those stimuli. Proactive agents, on the
other hand, take initiative and plan ahead to achieve their goals.
The environment in which an agent operates can also be fixed or dynamic.
Fixed environments have a static set of rules that do not change, while
dynamic environments are constantly changing and require agents to adapt to
new situations.
Multi-agent systems involve multiple agents working together to achieve a
common goal. These agents may have to coordinate their actions and
communicate with each other to achieve their objectives.
Agents are used in a variety of applications, including robotics, gaming, and
intelligent systems. They can be implemented using different programming
languages and techniques, including machine learning and natural language
processing.
Artificial intelligence is defined as the study of rational agents. A rational
agent could be anything that makes decisions, as a person, firm, machine, or
software. It carries out an action with the best outcome after considering past
and current percepts(agent’s perceptual inputs at a given instance). An AI
system is composed of an agent and its environment. The agents act in their
environment. The environment may contain other agents.
An agent is anything that can be viewed as :
 perceiving its environment through sensors and
 acting upon that environment through actuators
Note: Every agent can perceive its own actions (but not always the effects)
To understand the structure of Intelligent Agents, we should be familiar
with Architecture and Agent programs. Architecture is the machinery that the
agent executes on. It is a device with sensors and actuators, for example, a
robotic car, a camera, and a PC. Agent program is an implementation of an
agent function. An agent function is a map from the percept sequence(history
of all that an agent has perceived to date) to an action.

Agent = Architecture + Agent Program

Examples of Agent:
There are many examples of agents in artificial intelligence. Here are a few:
 Intelligent personal assistants: These are agents that are designed
to help users with various tasks, such as scheduling appointments,
sending messages, and setting reminders. Examples of intelligent
personal assistants include Siri, Alexa, and Google Assistant.
 Autonomous robots: These are agents that are designed to operate
autonomously in the physical world. They can perform tasks such as
cleaning, sorting, and delivering goods. Examples of autonomous
robots include the Roomba vacuum cleaner and the Amazon delivery
robot.
 Gaming agents: These are agents that are designed to play games,
either against human opponents or other agents. Examples of gaming
agents include chess-playing agents and poker-playing agents.
  Fraud detection agents: These are agents that are designed to detect
fraudulent behavior in financial transactions. They can analyze
patterns of behavior to identify suspicious activity and alert
authorities. Examples of fraud detection agents include those used by
banks and credit card companies.
 Traffic management agents: These are agents that are designed to
manage traffic flow in cities. They can monitor traffic patterns,
adjust traffic lights, and reroute vehicles to minimize congestion.
Examples of traffic management agents include those used in smart
cities around the world.
 A software agent has Keystrokes, file contents, received network
packages which act as sensors and displays on the screen, files, sent
network packets acting as actuators.
 A Human-agent has eyes, ears, and other organs which act as
sensors, and hands, legs, mouth, and other body parts acting as
actuators.
 A Robotic agent has Cameras and infrared range finders which act
as sensors and various motors acting as actuators.

Types of Agents

Agents can be grouped into five classes based on their degree of perceived
intelligence and capability :
 Simple Reflex Agents
  Model-Based Reflex Agents
 Goal-Based Agents
 Utility-Based Agents
 Learning Agent
 Multi-agent systems
 Hierarchical agents

Simple reflex agents

Simple reflex agents ignore the rest of the percept history and act only on the
basis of the current percept. Percept history is the history of all that an agent
has perceived to date. The agent function is based on the condition-action
rule. A condition-action rule is a rule that maps a state i.e, condition to an
action. If the condition is true, then the action is taken, else not. This agent
function only succeeds when the environment is fully observable. For simple
reflex agents operating in partially observable environments, infinite loops are
often unavoidable. It may be possible to escape from infinite loops if the agent
can randomize its actions.
Problems with Simple reflex agents are :
 Very limited intelligence.
 No knowledge of non-perceptual parts of the state.
 Usually too big to generate and store.
 If there occurs any change in the environment, then the collection of
rules need to be updated.

Model-based reflex agents

It works by finding a rule whose condition matches the current situation. A
model-based agent can handle partially observable environments by the use
of a model about the world. The agent has to keep track of the internal
state which is adjusted by each percept and that depends on the percept
history. The current state is stored inside the agent which maintains some kind
of structure describing the part of the world which cannot be seen.

Updating the state requires information about :

 how the world evolves independently from the agent, and
 how the agent’s actions affect the world.

Goal-based agents

These kinds of agents take decisions based on how far they are currently from
their goal(description of desirable situations). Their every action is intended to
reduce its distance from the goal. This allows the agent a way to choose
among multiple possibilities, selecting the one which reaches a goal state. The
knowledge that supports its decisions is represented explicitly and can be
modified, which makes these agents more flexible. They usually require search
and planning. The goal-based agent’s behavior can easily be changed.
Utility-based agents

The agents which are developed having their end uses as building blocks are
called utility-based agents. When there are multiple possible alternatives, then
to decide which one is best, utility-based agents are used. They choose actions
based on a preference (utility) for each state. Sometimes achieving the
desired goal is not enough. We may look for a quicker, safer, cheaper trip to
reach a destination. Agent happiness should be taken into consideration.
Utility describes how “happy” the agent is. Because of the uncertainty in the
world, a utility agent chooses the action that maximizes the expected utility. A
utility function maps a state onto a real number which describes the associated
degree of happiness.
Learning Agent :
A learning agent in AI is the type of agent that can learn from its past
experiences or it has learning capabilities. It starts to act with basic knowledge
and then is able to act and adapt automatically through learning.
A learning agent has mainly four conceptual components, which are:
1. Learning element: It is responsible for making improvements by
learning from the environment
2. Critic: The learning element takes feedback from critics which
describes how well the agent is doing with respect to a fixed
performance standard.
3. Performance element: It is responsible for selecting external action
4. Problem Generator: This component is responsible for suggesting
actions that will lead to new and informative experiences.
Multi-agent systems:
These agents interact with other agents to achieve a common goal. They may
have to coordinate their actions and communicate with each other to achieve
their objective.
A multi-agent system (MAS) is a system composed of multiple interacting
agents that are designed to work together to achieve a common goal. These
agents may be autonomous or semi-autonomous and are capable of perceiving
their environment, making decisions, and taking actions to achieve the
common objective.
MAS can be used in a variety of applications, including transportation
systems, robotics, and social networks. They can help improve efficiency,
reduce costs, and increase flexibility in complex systems.
MAS can be classified into different types based on their characteristics, such
as whether the agents have the same or different goals, whether the agents are
cooperative or competitive, and whether the agents are homogeneous or
heterogeneous.
In a homogeneous MAS, all the agents have the same capabilities, goals, and
behaviors. In contrast, in a heterogeneous MAS, the agents have different
capabilities, goals, and behaviors. This can make coordination more
challenging but can also lead to more flexible and robust systems.
Cooperative MAS involves agents working together to achieve a common
goal, while competitive MAS involves agents working against each other to
achieve their own goals. In some cases, MAS can also involve both
cooperative and competitive behavior, where agents must balance their own
interests with the interests of the group.
MAS can be implemented using different techniques, such as game theory,
machine learning, and agent-based modeling. Game theory is used to analyze
strategic interactions between agents and predict their behavior. Machine
learning is used to train agents to improve their decision-making capabilities
over time. Agent-based modeling is used to simulate complex systems and
study the interactions between agents.
Overall, multi-agent systems are a powerful tool in artificial intelligence that
can help solve complex problems and improve efficiency in a variety of
applications.
Hierarchical agents:
These agents are organized into a hierarchy, with high-level agents overseeing
the behavior of lower-level agents. The high-level agents provide goals and
constraints, while the low-level agents carry out specific tasks. Hierarchical
agents are useful in complex environments with many tasks and sub-tasks.
Hierarchical agents are agents that are organized into a hierarchy, with high-
level agents overseeing the behavior of lower-level agents. The high-level
agents provide goals and constraints, while the low-level agents carry out
specific tasks. This structure allows for more efficient and organized decision-
making in complex environments.
Hierarchical agents can be implemented in a variety of applications, including
robotics, manufacturing, and transportation systems. They are particularly
useful in environments where there are many tasks and sub-tasks that need to
be coordinated and prioritized.
In a hierarchical agent system, the high-level agents are responsible for setting
goals and constraints for the lower-level agents. These goals and constraints
are typically based on the overall objective of the system. For example, in a
manufacturing system, the high-level agents might set production targets for
the lower-level agents based on customer demand.
The low-level agents are responsible for carrying out specific tasks to achieve
the goals set by the high-level agents. These tasks may be relatively simple or
more complex, depending on the specific application. For example, in a
transportation system, the low-level agents might be responsible for managing
traffic flow at specific intersections.
Hierarchical agents can be organized into different levels, depending on the
complexity of the system. In a simple system, there may be only two levels:
high-level agents and low-level agents. In a more complex system, there may
be multiple levels, with intermediate-level agents responsible for coordinating
the activities of lower-level agents.
One advantage of hierarchical agents is that they allow for a more efficient use
of resources. By organizing agents into a hierarchy, it is possible to allocate
tasks to the agents that are best suited to carry them out, while avoiding
duplication of effort. This can lead to faster, more efficient decision-making
and better overall performance of the system.
Overall, hierarchical agents are a powerful tool in artificial intelligence that
can help solve complex problems and improve efficiency in a variety of
applications.
Uses of Agents :
Agents are used in a wide range of applications in artificial intelligence,
including:
Robotics: Agents can be used to control robots and automate tasks in
manufacturing, transportation, and other industries.
Smart homes and buildings: Agents can be used to control heating, lighting,
and other systems in smart homes and buildings, optimizing energy use and
improving comfort.
Transportation systems: Agents can be used to manage traffic flow, optimize
routes for autonomous vehicles, and improve logistics and supply chain
management.
Healthcare: Agents can be used to monitor patients, provide personalized
treatment plans, and optimize healthcare resource allocation.
Finance: Agents can be used for automated trading, fraud detection, and risk
management in the financial industry.
Games: Agents can be used to create intelligent opponents in games and
simulations, providing a more challenging and realistic experience for players.
Natural language processing: Agents can be used for language translation,
question answering, and chatbots that can communicate with users in natural
language.
Cybersecurity: Agents can be used for intrusion detection, malware analysis,
and network security.
Environmental monitoring: Agents can be used to monitor and manage
natural resources, track climate change, and improve environmental
sustainability.
Social media: Agents can be used to analyze social media data, identify trends
and patterns, and provide personalized recommendations to users.
Overall, agents are a versatile and powerful tool in artificial intelligence that
can help solve a wide range of problems in different fields.