Agentic AI is changing businesses forever.

Welcome to a new version of The AI Business!

This week, we have:

● Mark Cuban says AI is a tool, not the answer, for entrepreneurs.

● Google planning to replace Google Assistant with Gemini.

● How to use AI as your own assistant? (Free Playbook)

● What are AI agents and why do they matter for businesses?

● OpenAI launched 2 powerful tools to build AI agents for businesses.

AI news
The latest “AI in Business” News of The Week:

● Mark Cuban Says AI Is a Tool, Not the Answer, for Entrepreneurs: Speaking at SXSW, Mark Cuban emphasized that AI should be seen as a tool to amplify skills rather than a solution on its own. He encouraged entrepreneurs to invest time in learning AI, as it can help with research, sales, and business growth. While AI enhances productivity, Cuban warned against overreliance, stressing that human creativity and expertise remain irreplaceable. (Watch Video)

● AI-Powered Chatbots Enter the Omniverse to Support Small Businesses: Smarter Brands AI has partnered with Omniverse City to integrate conversational AI chatbots into virtual business operations. These AI agents will handle repetitive tasks like customer service and front-end management, helping businesses streamline workflows. The initiative aims to make AI more accessible and affordable, allowing small businesses to leverage automation without high development costs. (Read Article)

● OpenAI Launches $50M Consortium to Transform Education: OpenAI has committed $50 million to fund AI-driven research at top institutions like Harvard, MIT, and Oxford. The NextGenAI initiative aims to accelerate projects in healthcare, education, and energy by fostering collaboration across universities. With AI-powered innovations like improved disease diagnosis and text digitization, OpenAI continues to expand its impact on academia. (Read Article)

● Salesforce Invests $1B in Singapore to Drive AI-Powered Workforces: Salesforce is committing $1 billion over five years to expand AI adoption in Singapore through its Agentforce platform. The investment aims to address labor shortages by integrating AI agents with human workers across industries. This move aligns with Salesforce’s broader global AI push, including recent investments in Saudi Arabia and Argentina. (Read Article)

● Google to Replace Google Assistant with Gemini Across Devices: Google announced that it will phase out Google Assistant on Android and other devices, replacing it with Gemini later this year. The transition will include phones, tablets, cars, smartwatches, and home devices like speakers and TVs. Google promises improved AI capabilities with Gemini, adding new features such as music playback, timers, and lock screen actions. (Read Article)

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Agentic AI
AI Agents: What They Really Are? And Why Do They Matter For Businesses?

AI agents are being hyped as the future of work, with tech giants like OpenAI and Microsoft claiming they will transform businesses. But there’s a problem—there’s no clear definition of what an AI agent actually is. This confusion can make it hard for business leaders to decide whether agentic AI is worth investing in or just another overused buzzword.

What Is Agentic AI?

Agentic AI refers to AI systems that operate with some level of independence, completing tasks on behalf of users. Unlike basic automation, AI agents can analyze information, make decisions, and take action within defined boundaries. They can:

● Automate repetitive tasks like scheduling and data entry.

● Assist employees by researching information and generating reports.

● Interact with systems and users to streamline operations.

But AI agents are not fully autonomous—they still require human oversight and strategic direction.

Common Misconceptions:

Many assume AI agents are:

● The same as AI assistants: Assistants like ChatGPT respond to prompts, while agents proactively complete tasks.

● Completely independent: Most agents still rely on human input and supervision.

● Replacing jobs: They reduce workloads but don’t replace critical human decision-making.

Is Agentic AI Right for Your Business?

For businesses, AI agents are useful when applied strategically to improve efficiency and reduce manual tasks. The key is identifying where they add value, such as:

● Customer service automation: Handling basic inquiries while escalating complex issues.

● Sales and marketing support: Researching leads and generating outreach emails.

● Operations management: Automating data entry, reporting, and scheduling.

The Bottom Line:

Agentic AI isn’t a magic solution but a powerful tool when used correctly. Business leaders should focus on practical applications, cost-effectiveness, and maintaining human oversight to maximize AI’s potential without falling for the hype.

AI Spotlight
OpenAI Unveils Powerful New Tools to Build AI Agents For Businesses?

OpenAI has officially launched the Responses API and Agents SDK, giving businesses and developers the tools to build custom AI agents capable of automating complex tasks. These new offerings allow enterprises to create AI-powered systems that can browse the web, search internal company files, and even navigate digital interfaces, similar to OpenAI’s own Operator agent.

The Responses API enables companies to integrate AI agents that can pull real-time information from the web using GPT-4o search models, ensuring higher factual accuracy compared to traditional AI models. It also features a file search tool, allowing businesses to quickly retrieve information across internal databases. Additionally, OpenAI’s Computer-Using Agent (CUA) model—now in research preview—can automate digital tasks by generating mouse and keyboard actions, making it a powerful tool for workflow automation.

Alongside this, OpenAI introduced the Agents SDK, an open-source toolkit that helps developers integrate AI agents with internal systems, implement safeguards, and monitor AI agent activities for debugging and optimization. The Agents SDK follows OpenAI’s earlier Swarm framework, designed for coordinating multiple AI agents within enterprise environments.

While OpenAI acknowledges that AI agents still face challenges like occasional hallucinations and unreliable automation, these new tools mark a significant leap toward making AI agents useful for real business applications. With AI-driven automation becoming a competitive advantage, OpenAI’s latest releases could accelerate the adoption of agentic AI across industries.

That’s it for today, thanks for reading till the end. 😊 

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See you next week.