Open Source Tools For Agentic AI: An Overview
OpenSource For U, Friday, March 13th, 2026
This outline of the essential tools, platforms, and frameworks across each layer of the agentic AI stack provides a structured blueprint for organisations seeking to adopt these systems at scale.
Agentic AI refers to AI systems capable of taking actions, using tools, coordinating workflows, and achieving goals with minimal human intervention. Unlike traditional generative AI, which focuses on producing text, images, or code, agentic AI systems can:
- Understand objectives
- Break them into tasks
- Select tools or APIs
- Execute multi-step workflows
- Monitor progress
- Adapt based on feedback
- Collaborate with other agents or humans
Key characteristics of agentic AI
Agentic AI systems plan, decide, act, and learn. This is fundamentally different from conversational or generative AI because they don't just produce responses; they autonomously execute tasks and drive outcomes across systems. The process involves perception, reasoning, planning, action and reflection.