Should this be a workflow?
Words made simple
A few useful meanings before you read the explanation.
- AI
- Software techniques for tasks such as recognizing patterns, understanding language or generating content.
- Agent
- An application that uses a model to choose its next action within defined limits. It can use tools and continue through several steps.
- Deterministic
- Following steps or rules defined by code. The model does not decide which step should run next in a deterministic workflow.
More words from this lesson
- State
- The data describing where a workflow is now, what it already knows, and what still needs to happen.
- Durable
- Able to retain progress and recover across interruptions. Durable workflows require appropriate storage and retry behavior.
- Yes when steps depend on durable business state, external events, review, timers, compensation, or repeated retries.
- Distinguish conversational agent state from the canonical business process.
- Choose a queue for independent jobs and a durable workflow platform for long-lived coordination when required.
Example: AI drafts claim fields; deterministic workflow validates, waits for exact approval, submits idempotently, and notifies through an outbox.
Can you explain it without the notes?
Should this be a workflow?
Use your own words. Explain an example and one limitation before checking the explanation.
Check your explanation
Yes when steps depend on durable business state, external events, review, timers, compensation, or repeated retries. Distinguish conversational agent state from the canonical business process. Choose a queue for independent jobs and a durable workflow…
Turn this concept into a clear answer.
Practice this conceptAdapted from 13_AI.MD · “6. Should this be a workflow?”. Examples are study fragments; framework behavior can depend on your version.