‘AI agents’ are coming — here’s what you need to know

"The year of the agents" is upon us — but it's not the ones you think.

Futurist and former Google DeepMind executive Steve Brown told industry leaders that they need to be ready to work with "AI agents," which go far beyond ChatGPT-style prompts to perform complex tasks, learning and adapting as they go.

This year, he said, you're going to see the first AI agents. And they may not be great, but they'll get better fast. The people and companies that will do well "will be the ones that embrace them quickly," Brown said.

"I think it's very real to say that your next co-worker might be a machine" working for electrons, not dollars, he added.

AI agents will be able to do things like research markets, manage listing updates and schedule showings, Brown said at last month's T3 Sixty Leadership Summit. (Note: Real Estate News is an editorially independent division of T3 Sixty.)

AI agents can even spawn other agents to collaborate in "swarms," which somehow sounded not too terrifying when Brown described it.

"Anything your team does on a laptop, these agents will be able to do," he said. "This is what the 'Year of the Agent' looks like."

The types of AI you need to know

Brown framed today's moment as the dawn of a new industrial era, powered not by steam or electricity, but by intelligence. This shift, he said, will ripple through every sector — changing how we run businesses, educate our kids, manage healthcare, and yes, buy and sell homes.

In addition to "agentic AI," there is also "spatial AI," which is about perceiving and interpreting physical space.

"This isn't just about language anymore," Brown said. "Spatial AI understands objects, rooms, even gravity. It can build 3D maps and interact with the world around it."

Applications are already emerging: visual property scans, immersive 3D walkthroughs, automated inspections. And major players like Meta and Google are racing to lead, in addition to companies focused more directly on real estate.

Physical AI, aka intelligent robots, are already working warehouse shifts.

"These robots learn by example," Brown said. "They watch a human, practice the task, and once one learns, they all know it."

While physical robots may not disrupt brokerage models soon, Brown urged leaders to take it seriously as a sign of how quickly things are evolving.

AI today is "the worst it will ever be," so buckle up. 

Humans, prepare yourselves! Here's how

The most important thing humans can do right now is learn by doing. Try AI tools. Talk to digital assistants. "As AI evolves, your business will need to evolve with it — again and again," Brown said.

Business leaders must start re-engineering workflows now. He recommended breaking down every process into tasks and asking:

• Can this task be offloaded to AI?

• Can AI augment human performance?

• Can AI extend human capability beyond what's possible today?

"What will you do when you can hire digital employees and design them to be perfect employees and then scale them across your organizations?" Brown asked. "What will that mean for your culture, for your organization, for the capabilities you need, for retraining your people, all of it?"

He emphasized, however, that AI is not just about cutting costs. It's about elevating people — freeing them from repetitive, low-value tasks so they can focus on the things that matter most: strategy, relationships and trust.

"AI should take the suck out of your job," Brown said. "Let it handle the drudgery so humans can shine."

Brown painted a future where consumers no longer browse listing pages or fiddle with filters. Instead, they'll talk to an AI assistant that understands their needs, recommends properties, and only calls in a human agent when trust and guidance are needed.

"People don't want to buy a home from a bot," Brown said. "They want a trusted advisor. But if that advisor isn't using AI, they'll lose out to someone who is."