Automation follows rigid if-then rules. Agents reason and adapt. Traditional automation breaks when it encounters unexpected situations. Agents handle ambiguity by thinking through problems and choosing appropriate responses.

Automation requires you to map every possible scenario upfront. Agents figure out what to do as situations arise.

The tradeoff is predictability versus flexibility. Automation gives you consistent, predictable results. Agents give you intelligent responses to novel situations but with less predictable outcomes.