02
Field guides
Chatbot, automation, AI agent: what's the difference?
A chatbot answers, an automation repeats, an AI agent pursues an outcome within limits. A plain-language guide for choosing between them.
In development
Ideas for the way tomorrow works.
Plain-language guides on AI agents, agentic software and the choices that make them trustworthy.
9 published · 6 in development
Featured · Definitions
What is agentic software?
Software where your team and AI agents work under the same rules and permissions. What that means, and why it is not a chatbot.
Mare Pomana · 7 min readRead the guide
On the desk.
Guides in progress, written for the people deciding, not only the people building.
14
Field guides
Where organisational context gets lost
Context rarely disappears in one place. It leaks at the handovers, the side spreadsheets and the inboxes between teams and systems.
1 min read
13
Governance
Agentic software works within boundaries
Permissions, approvals, escalation and the ability to step in. The four boundaries that keep AI agents useful and accountable.
2 min read
12
Definitions
How many programs does one piece of work pass through?
Information in one system, the decision in another, the next step somewhere else. How agentic software connects the tools you already rely on.
1 min read
11
Definitions
We build workspaces, not dashboards
A dashboard shows what is happening. A workspace gives people and AI agents a place to do something about it.
2 min read
10
Field guides
Start with the business, not the software
The fastest way to build the wrong software is to begin with the software. Why understanding the organisation comes before choosing a solution.
2 min read
09
Field guides
A digital workforce should extend your team, not compete with it
AI agents are most useful when they take on defined support work, so people have more capacity for judgement, relationships and accountability.
2 min read
08
Definitions
Clicking a button is rarely the real outcome
When someone clicks approve, they mean more than one change to a record. How agentic software carries that intent through the work, within the rules.
3 min read
N01
News
We build agentic software from the Gold Coast
Plumb Digital is based on the Gold Coast, Australia. It is our home and where we are building the company, but it does not set the limits of our work.
2 min read
03
Governance
Autonomous AI agents, and how much autonomy you actually want
Autonomy is a dial, not a destination. The stakes, and whether a mistake can be undone, decide where to set it.
In development
04
Definitions
Agentic AI vs generative AI: the difference that matters
Generative AI produces content. Agentic AI pursues outcomes through actions. Why the difference changes what governance you need.
In development
05
Government
Before an AI agent touches a council workflow: the buyer's checklist
Eight questions to ask before any AI agent touches a workflow: who approves, what it can access, what gets recorded and how to stop it.
In development
06
Government
AI in local government: the governed path
Where councils are with AI, where the rules have fallen behind, and a step-by-step path that proves it works before handing over more.
In development
07
Government
AI agents for government: governed by design
Clear limits, role permissions, human sign-off and an audit trail, explained for public-sector buyers.
In development