OpenAI's Agent Builder isn't actually building agents.

Here's the difference.

Agents:

• Know what tools to use and how to use them
• Maintain context and memory
• Proactively suggest what's needed

Workflows:

• You define what tools need to be used and how
• You provide context with each execution
• You build new workflows for each use case

If you're doing the thinking, it's not an agent. It's a workflow.

I learned this the expensive way: 30 minutes with Claude Code vs 10+ hours with N8n to build the same feature.

Same outcome. Wildly different process.

One tool figured out what to do. The other waited for me to map every single step.

Here's the expensive truth:

If you're mapping the workflow → You're the agent. If you're defining every step → You're the agent. If you're handling the errors → You're the agent.

Workflow builders don't replace your thinking. They charge you to document it.

Real agents think. Workflow builders wait for instructions.

30 minutes vs 10+ hours isn't a feature comparison. It's the difference between delegation and micromanagement.

I don't have time to be the agent AND pay for the tool.

Neither do you.

Open your last "AI agent." Who's doing the thinking—you or the tool?

#AI #AIAgents #ProductDevelopment