In this episode, Nathan sits down with Div Garg, founder of Multion, to discuss the current state and future outlook of AI agents. They discuss benchmarking real-world tasks, the promise and perils of consumer AI adoption, predictions that 2024 may be a breakout year for personal bots, and more. If you need an ecommerce platform, check out our sponsor Shopify: https://shopify.com/cognitive for a $1/month trial period.

We're hiring across the board at Turpentine and for Erik's personal team on other projects he's incubating. He's hiring a Chief of Staff, EA, Head of Special Projects, Investment Associate, and more. For a list of JDs, check out: eriktorenberg.com.

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LINKS:

MultiOn: https://www.multion.ai/

Part 1 with Div Garg: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PR2Mdlx5eik

SPONSORS:

Shopify is the global commerce platform that helps you sell at every stage of your business. Shopify powers 10% of ALL eCommerce in the US. And Shopify's the global force behind Allbirds, Rothy's, and Brooklinen, and 1,000,000s of other entrepreneurs across 175 countries.From their all-in-one e-commerce platform, to their in-person POS system – wherever and whatever you're selling, Shopify's got you covered. With free Shopify Magic, sell more with less effort by whipping up captivating content that converts – from blog posts to product descriptions using AI. Sign up for $1/month trial period: https://shopify.com/cognitive

Omneky is an omnichannel creative generation platform that lets you launch hundreds of thousands of ad iterations that actually work customized across all platforms, with a click of a button. Omneky combines generative AI and real-time advertising data. Mention "Cog Rev" for 10% off www.omneky.com

NetSuite has 25 years of providing financial software for all your business needs. More than 36,000 businesses have already upgraded to NetSuite by Oracle, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you're looking for an ERP platform ✅ head to NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/cognitive and download your own customized KPI checklist.

X/SOCIALS:

@labenz (Nathan)

@divgarg9

@MultiON_AI (MultiOn)

@CogRev_Podcast

TIMESTAMPS:

(00:00) - Episode Preview

(00:06:06) - Current state of AI agents - still early with chat abilities, but logical reasoning lacking

(00:12:32) - Estimated timeline for usable everyday AI agents - focused on adoption and reliability

(00:17:41) - Architectures beyond language models - action transformers and process optimization

(00:22:00) - Context limits of current AI models - efficient context compression is key

(00:25:00 - Managing memory and knowledge retrieval in agents

(00:29:40) - MultiOn's own model creation

(00:30:16) - Sponsors: Netsuite | Omneky

(00:49:00) - Maturing agent capabilities beyond language with planning systems

(00:32:00) - Benchmarking agent capabilities on real-world website tasks

(00:59:30) - Inspiration from computer OS thread scheduling and coordination

(01:02:30) - Expanding agents to mobile for voice commands and authentication

(01:06:47) - AI agents complementing vs substituting human roles

(01:09:00) - Removing repetitive "digital chores" to change job landscapes

(01:11:36) - Sourcing high-quality demonstrator data at scale

(01:13:00) - Privacy protections when collecting user data

This show is produced by Turpentine: a network of podcasts, newsletters, and more, covering technology, business, and culture — all from the perspective of industry insiders and experts. We’re launching new shows every week, and we’re looking for industry-leading sponsors — if you think that might be you and your company, email us at erik@turpentine.co.

Episode 191: How to Win an Open