Episode 8: Chatbot, assistant, copilot, or agent?

1. 1 Layers: model, product, roleThe model is the engine that works with language. The product wraps it with a screen, tools and memory. The role is how the product behaves, such as chatbot or agent.Try: When you see a word, ask: is it naming the engine, the product, or the behavior?
2. 2 Question 1: Who starts the action?Many tools wait for you to ask. Some can be set up to start on their own.Try: Does it need your prompt every time?
3. 3 Question 2: What can it touch?A chat window only, or also files, a calendar, other apps? More access means it can do more, and a mistake can reach further (common sense).Try: Check which permissions you gave it.
4. 4 Question 3: How many steps does it take alone?One reply, a few fixed steps, or a path it chooses itself.Try: Can it keep going without you?
5. 5 Question 4: Who checks the result?You at the end, you at set points, or nobody. Some setups can pause and ask a person.Try: Where do you want it to stop and ask?
6. 6 One common reading of the wordsChatbot: you start, it talks. Assistant: helps with tasks, you steer. Copilot: an assistant inside an app you already use. Agent: you give a goal, it chooses steps and tools, within limits that are set for it. The edges blur.General explanation, not a standard. Companies mix these words.

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