Agents in Artificial Intelligence

Last Updated : 05 Jun, 2023

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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, such 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).

Interaction of Agents with the Environment

Structure of an AI Agent
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. An 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

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 that act as sensors and displays on the
screen, files, and 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 act as
actuators.
 A Robotic agent has Cameras and infrared range finders
which act as sensors and various motors act as actuators.
 Characteristics of an Agent

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., a 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 needs to be updated.

Simple Reflex Agents

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?
 How do the agent’s actions affect the world?
 Model-Based Reflex Agents

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 their 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.
 Goal-Based Agents

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.
 Utility-Based Agents

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.
 Learning Agent

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 action 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, 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
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.

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