Thread by @rryssf_

Everyone’s talking about AI agents and almost no one knows how to build one that actually works.

So here's the guide that you can use to build agents that work ↓

(Comment "Agent" and I'll DM you mega prompt to automate agent building using LLMs)

First: most "AI agents" are just glorified chatbots.

You don't need 20 papers or a PhD.

You need 4 things:

→ Memory
→ Tools
→ Autonomy
→ A reason to exist

Let’s break it down like you're building a startup MVP:

Step 1 - Start stupid simple.

Your stack:

✅ Python
✅ LangChain or CrewAI
✅ OpenAI API (GPT-4 Turbo)
✅ Pinecone or ChromaDB (for memory)
✅ Browser tools or API wrappers

That’s enough to build a basic functional agent in hours, not weeks.

Step 2 - Give your agent a real job.

Don't build an agent that "can do anything."

Give it one job:

→ Book meetings
→ Summarize emails
→ Scrape LinkedIn
→ Manage your Notion
→ Answer FAQs

Small scope = actual success.

Step 3 - Autonomy ≠ Magic.

Everyone thinks agents should self-loop forever.
That’s why they crash and hallucinate.

Fix it with:

→ Guardrails
→ Task manager loops (like CrewAI or AutoGen)
→ Human-in-the-loop checkpoints

Autonomy needs rules. Not just vibes.

Step 4 - Memory is not a vector DB.

Founders confuse “storing text” with “having memory.”

You want:

→ Short-term memory (conversation context)
→ Long-term memory (retrievable knowledge)
→ Episodic memory (what it did before)

Most agents don’t have this = they forget everything.

Step 5 - Tools are what make it smart.

No tools = useless agent.

Tool it up with:

→ Web browsing
→ Python eval
→ Zapier for APIs
→ Custom plugins for your stack (Stripe, Airtable, Slack, etc)

The agent doesn’t need to “think” it needs to act.

Step 6 - UI is half the product.

Don’t ship a CLI. Nobody cares.

Wrap your agent in:

→ Streamlit (fast MVP)
→ Next.js + React
→ ChatGPT Plugin UI
→ WhatsApp/Slack bot

Build like a product, not a demo.

What breaks most agents?

→ No error handling
→ No task boundaries
→ Bad prompt hygiene
→ Trying to do too much
→ Running in infinite loops
→ Forgetting the damn API keys

Your agent isn’t dumb. You’re just lazy. Fix your plumbing.

Want shortcuts? Steal these.

→ Use Superagent
if you hate infra
→ Use LangGraph
for smart flows
→ Use CrewAI
to orchestrate roles
→ Use ReAct pattern
for tool use
→ Use GPT-4 Turbo with function calling - it just works

Want examples? Build these:

• An AI SDR that scrapes leads + sends intros
• A content repurposer that posts on X + LinkedIn
• A Notion bot that updates your docs from meetings
• A customer support bot that handles 80% of tickets
• A market research bot that autogenerates reports

All agent-ready. All monetizable.

12. Stop waiting for GPT-5.

99% of people saying “agents are early” haven’t built one.

You can build a useful AI agent today - if you don’t try to build Jarvis.

Start small.
Ship fast.
Make it useful.

Then stack automation on top.

Building a solid AI agent is like building a startup MVP:

→ Solve a small problem
→ Use off-the-shelf tools
→ Keep it scoped
→ Iterate fast
→ Make it usable
→ Don’t be fancy

And most importantly:

Build something useful, not impressive.

Save this thread. Share it with your cofounder.

And if you're actually building an agent in public - reply and drop a link.

I want to see the ones that work.