Generative AI vs. Agentic AI: Which One Should You Use at Work?

Dec 16

The AI Boom Isn’t One-Size-Fits-All

The hype around AI is real—but not all AI is built to serve the same purpose.

Generative AI gets all the attention (hello, ChatGPT and Midjourney), but Agentic AI is quickly rising behind the scenes. The difference? Generative AI helps you create. Agentic AI helps you complete.

As venture capitalist Sarah Guo recently shared with The Information, “Agentic AI is the evolution of automation—it moves from tools that assist to tools that act. It’s less about answers and more about outcomes.”

So which one should you be using in your work?

What Is Generative AI?

Generative AI refers to models that can generate content—text, code, images, music, or even 3D designs. These tools work best when humans provide creative prompts, context, or strategy.

🛠 Use Cases:

Drafting marketing copy or blog posts
Generating code snippets for developers
Creating customer support templates
Designing initial product mockups

💡 Real-World Example:
HubSpot uses generative AI to help marketing teams auto-generate email sequences based on past performance. This gives content marketers a head start without losing human oversight.

🧠 Quote:
"Generative AI tools give marketers and content creators a significant productivity boost—but they still need a human touch." — Dharmesh Shah, HubSpot CTO

What Is Agentic AI?

Agentic AI refers to autonomous systems that act on behalf of users. These tools can execute multi-step tasks across platforms, integrate with CRMs, calendars, inboxes, and even analyze results and adapt in real-time.

🛠 Use Cases:

Sending follow-up emails automatically after a webinar
Updating CRM fields when new data comes in
Scheduling interviews by reading availability
Handling customer support escalations across platforms

💡 Real-World Example:
Zapier’s Autopilot is Agentic AI in action. You can set up an agent to monitor a form submission, generate a custom response, update a Google Sheet, notify the sales team in Slack, and follow up with the customer—without touching a button.

🧠 Quote:
“Agentic workflows let us move from a reactive to a proactive operations strategy. We can trust the system to take the right action without waiting on a human to push it along.” — Wade Foster, CEO of Zapier

Generative AI vs. Agentic AI—What’s the Difference?

    Feature
    Generative AI
    Agentic AI
  


    Primary function
    Create content or ideas
    Perform tasks or workflows
  

    User input required
    High
    Low to moderate
  

    Output
    Drafts, summaries, images
    Completed actions, automations
  

    Best for
    Marketers, writers, designers
    Ops teams, sales, HR, admin
  

How to Decide Which One You Need

Ask Yourself These Questions

1. What type of task are you solving?
If it’s about thinking, writing, or ideating—Generative AI.
If it’s about doing, responding, or delegating—Agentic AI.

2. Is there room for creative input or variation?
Creative variation = Generative AI
Structured repetition = Agentic AI

3. Does this task slow you down often?
If yes, and it’s repetitive? Let Agentic AI handle it.

Real-World Scenarios You Might Recognize

    Task
    Your Role
    Right AI Fit
    Why
  


    Writing job descriptions
    HR Manager
    Generative
    Needs a creative start and tone guidance
  

    Posting to multiple job boards
    HR Coordinator
    Agentic
    Repeatable process that doesn’t need creativity
  

    Generating a slide deck from meeting notes
    Product Manager
    Generative
    AI can translate content into visual form
  

    Following up after demos
    Sales Rep
    Agentic
    Predictable task with clear rules
  

    Drafting social media content
    Content Creator
    Generative
    Creative-first use case
  

    Routing inbound leads
    RevOps
    Agentic
    Workflow-based logic with automation potential
  

What Experts Are Saying

Gartner predicts that by 2026, 30% of new applications will be delivered via agent-based workflows—marking a shift from human-triggered automation to autonomous task execution.
Andreessen Horowitz recently wrote:
“Agentic AI unlocks compounding productivity gains by removing the friction between insight and action.”

TL;DR

Use Generative AI when you need content, ideas, or creative output.
Use Agentic AI when you want something done—automatically, reliably, and repeatedly.
Most businesses benefit from both: ideation → execution.

How Native Ventures Can Help

Want to implement AI, but unsure where to start?

At Native Ventures, we help businesses assess where Generative or Agentic AI can create the most value—without overcomplicating things. Whether you're automating outreach, upgrading onboarding, or building internal tools, we meet you where you're at.

Let’s get AI working for you—not the other way around.
Schedule a quick strategy call with Native Ventures. We’ll help you figure out what to automate, what to create, and how to scale it all—without needing a PhD in prompt engineering.
👉 Book a time here.

Nate Morris