What Is the AI Agent Loop? The Core Architecture Behind Autonomous AI Systems

Key Takeaways The architectural difference between a chatbot and an AI agent is one pattern: the agent loop. It’s an LLM invoking tools inside an iterative cycle, repeating until the task is complete or a stopping condition is reached. A chatbot responds in a single pass. An agent persists, adapts, and acts across multiple steps: perceiving its environment, reasoning over available options, executing an action, and observing the result before deciding what comes next. Every major AI company (...