An AI Agent's ability to take action depends on the "tools" it has been given access to. In the world of AI, a tool is simply a function or program the agent can decide to run to get a specific job done.

Think of it like a handy person. They have a toolkit with a hammer, a screwdriver, and a wrench. When they see a loose screw, they know the right tool to use is the screwdriver. An AI agent works the same way. It assesses its goal and then chooses the best tool from its digital toolkit.

What's in an Agent's Toolkit?

The tools can be simple or incredibly powerful. A basic toolkit might include:

• searchTheWeb(query): Allows the agent to look up current information online.
• readFile(filename): Lets the agent read a specific file on its system.
• writeFile(filename, content): Enables the agent to save information or write code.
• askUserForClarification(question): A crucial tool that allows the agent to ask you for more information if it gets stuck or needs guidance.

A Travel Planning Example

Imagine an AI agent with the goal: "Book a weekend trip to San Diego for me." Its reasoning and tool use might look like this:

1. Thought: "I need to know the user's travel dates."
2. Action: Runs the askUserForClarification("What dates do you want to travel?") tool.
3. (User responds: "Next Friday to Sunday.")
4. Thought: "Okay, I have the dates. Now I need to find flights."
5. Action: Runs the searchTheWeb("flights from SFO to SAN next Friday") tool.
6. Observation: The search returns several flight options with prices.
7. Thought: "The first flight is the cheapest. Now I need to find a hotel."
8. Action: Runs the searchTheWeb("hotels in downtown San Diego for next weekend") tool.

The agent continues this loop—thinking, choosing a tool, and observing the result—to build a complete itinerary. The power of Agentic AI comes from this ability to combine multiple tools in a logical sequence to achieve a complex goal.