Resources About Agentic AI
Agentic artificial intelligence is becoming the workhorse of highly capable AI systems. Understanding the legal opportunities and risks of agentic AI requires some basic understanding of what agentic AI is and what are the consequences of using and developing it.
I. What is agentic AI?
In a recent article, MIT professor John Horton describes agentic AI this way. Agentic AI systems are “autonomous software systems that perceive, reason, and act in digital environments to achieve goals on behalf of human principals, with capabilities for tool use, economic transactions, and strategic interaction.” The article continues, “The technology presents the same high-stakes data quality, governance, and trust and security challenges as other AI implementations, and rapid evolution could also propel organizations to adopt agentic AI without fully understanding its capabilities or having created a formal strategy and risk management framework.”
II. What might be a surprising legal risk for companies writing their own agentic AI applications?
SVLG clients are beginning to ask us about creating their own agentic AI applications. While agentic AI apps can perform incredibly powerful tasks and greatly increase efficiency, they may act in unanticipated and unpredictable ways. They may cause damage to the businesses creating them or even damage third parties. For example, a recent news story reported that a company’s own AI agent deleted its entire database. Deleting your own data is one thing. Causing damage to another business or individual, however, is something entirely different. Such an event could lead to a dispute or even a lawsuit.
SVLG can help clients manage the risks of “do it yourself” development of agentic AI applications. We can do a deep dive into what your planned application does, the background of laws that might apply to your application (requiring your compliance), the potential legal risks you may face, and steps you can take to mitigate your risk.
If you developed your own agentic AI application and have concerns about legal risks, or are thinking of purchasing an agentic AI solution, please contact Stephen Wu, (408) 573-5700. Since 2007, Steve has been advising client on artificial intelligence legal issues, including compliance, governance, and agreements.