Using agents

This course teaches you to hand a task to an agent and decide how much it may do on its own, then check what comes back against what you asked for.

0%

1. getting started
2. halfway
3. almost there
4. complete

tutorialFinding information with an assistanttutorialWorking from your own files and imagestutorialThinking a problem through with an assistanttutorialDrafting a text and asking for critiquetutorialDelegating a task to an agenttutorialChanging the brief while the agent worksexplanationChat, agent or automationtutorialTrying two models on the same taskexplanationThe steps that stay humanexplanationReasoning across tool levels

explanationHow much the agent may do before it askstutorialBreaking a task into pieces an agent can finishexplanationWhen to stop delegating and do it yourself

tutorialDelegating in rounds

Review: nothing due yet

About this course

Goals

• Chooses the right tool and autonomy level for a job
• Delegates a task to an agent and checks the result

Counts

14 lessons, 43 checkpoints

Builds on

• Prompting
• Capabilities and limits
• What an agent is
• Verifying outputs

Delegating work to an agent and checking what comes back. Progress is kept in this browser; see your progress.

Lesson plan (14 lessons, 14 live)

#	Lesson	Status	Mode	Minutes	Covers	Serves	Exercise	After	Issue
Working with an assistant
1	Finding information with an assistantusing-agents/finding-information	live	tutorial	20 estimate	assistant-work	writes-a-brief	do
2	Working from your own files and imagesusing-agents/working-from-files	live	tutorial	20 estimate	assistant-work	writes-a-brief	do	Finding information with an assistant
3	Thinking a problem through with an assistantusing-agents/thought-partner	live	tutorial	25 estimate	assistant-work	writes-a-brief	do		#139
4	Drafting a text and asking for critiqueusing-agents/drafting-and-critique	live	tutorial	35 estimate	assistant-work	writes-a-briefreviews-against-brief	do	Thinking a problem through with an assistant	#142
Delegating to an agent
5	Delegating a task to an agentusing-agents/delegating	live	tutorial	25 estimate	delegating	writes-a-briefchooses-autonomyreviews-against-brief	do
6	How much the agent may do before it asksusing-agents/choosing-autonomy	live	explanation	20 estimate	delegating	chooses-autonomy	judge	Delegating a task to an agent	#145
7	Changing the brief while the agent worksusing-agents/adjusting-the-brief	live	tutorial	25 estimate	delegating	adjusts-mid-task	do	Delegating a task to an agent
Decomposing work
8	Breaking a task into pieces an agent can finishusing-agents/breaking-work-into-pieces	live	tutorial	25 estimate	decomposition	writes-a-brief	do	Delegating a task to an agent
9	Delegating in roundsusing-agents/delegating-in-rounds	live	tutorial	25 estimate	decomposition	adjusts-mid-taskreviews-against-brief	do	Breaking a task into pieces an agent can finish, Changing the brief while the agent works	#154
10	When to stop delegating and do it yourselfusing-agents/when-to-stop	live	explanation	25 estimate	decomposition	adjusts-mid-task	judge	Delegating in rounds
Choosing models and tools
11	Chat, agent or automationusing-agents/chat-agent-or-automation	live	explanation	30 estimate	choosing-tools	picks-chat-agent-or-automation	judge	How much the agent may do before it asks	#158
12	Trying two models on the same taskusing-agents/trying-two-models	live	tutorial	25 estimate	choosing-tools	picks-a-model-by-fit	do	Chat, agent or automation	#161
13	The steps that stay humanusing-agents/steps-that-stay-human	live	explanation	25 estimate	choosing-tools	keeps-the-human-steps	judge	Chat, agent or automation	#164
14	Reasoning across tool levelsusing-agents/reasoning-across-tool-levels	live	explanation	25 estimate	choosing-tools	reasons-across-levels	judge	The steps that stay human, Trying two models on the same task	#168