In 2023, artificial intelligence has become an important part of business language. In 2024, it began competing for space in operations. Now, in 2025, we are at a more advanced point. It is the time of artificial intelligence that acts alone. In it, programs not only examine information, but also make business decisions without needing the help of people.
For many leaders, this seems like something from the future. For some people, it is risky. But in reality, the movement is already underway. It happens silently and cannot be avoided. Large companies around the world are allowing artificial intelligence to make choices about prices, transportation, credit, inventory, risk and even people. Often what the AI decides works better than any group of people.
The evolution: from automation to autonomy
Until recently, artificial intelligence meant automation. This means that tasks that are repeated were better organized. Then, models emerged that analyzed information, these models recommended actions, but it was still the manager who decided whether to accept or reject the suggestion.
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Today, we are at a new stage where AI godand not just guides. These are systems capable of:
- dynamically adjust prices based on demand;
- redistribute logistics fleets without asking for approval;
- approve microcredits in seconds;
- manage inventory based on probabilistic forecasting;
- pause marketing campaigns when detecting a drop in performance;
- reorder employee schedules based on real occupation.
This advancement happens because new models, such as multimodal ones and agents that use LLMs, bring together three main skills. These skills are understanding, deciding and acting.
Companies that are already living this future
Commerce is one of the most developed areas. Walmart uses artificial intelligence to decide which products it currently has in stock. Amazon lets fully automatic computer programs decide prices that change several times throughout the day. In the financial market, banks in Europe are experimenting with artificial intelligence to automatically adjust credit prices. And large airlines adjust fares and routes with models that feed themselves on occupancy and profitability data.
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Even in industry, autonomous robots optimize production, internal movement routes and predictive maintenance without depending on the manager.
This is the new trend.
When the machine knows before the manager
The big turning point is in speed difference. A person makes decisions in a few minutes or even a few hours. A computer program makes decisions in a few milliseconds, every day, all day long. When something is really good, everyone wants to use it.
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AI notices patterns in customer behavior before the weekly report is compiled. It detects risk of default before the history appears. It identifies operational anomalies before the operator notices. And, with autonomy, it can correct the deviation automatically.
This anticipation creates a market where slow decisions become a form of financial loss.
Autonomy is not the absence of control, it is a new type of governance
The biggest concern executives have is: “If artificial intelligence is going to make decisions, who is going to be responsible for those decisions?”
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The answer is simple: companies. And that is why the advancement of autonomy requires a new model of digital governance.
Instead of approving each decision, the manager’s role becomes:
- define limits and policies;
- monitor reliability indicators;
- audit automated decisions;
- create intervention protocols;
- ensure AI operates within company values.
It’s the same concept that transformed modern aviation: The pilots are still in control, but many parts of the flight are decided and done by the system. The person looks and cares, but doesn’t do it.
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When autonomy becomes a risk
Autonomy opens up opportunities, but also strategic risks:
- Scale error: one wrong decision can multiply quickly.
- Technological dependence: companies that outsource too many decisions lose working memory.
- Invisible biases: Models can reinforce historical inequalities or errors.
- Interpretation errors: AI understands correlationsbut you don’t always understand intention.
Therefore, autonomy does not mean taking humans out of work. It means putting humans in new places. The manager no longer does everything alone. He starts to take care of the decisions. The analyst stops gathering information and starts checking intelligence. Companies stop operating on “instinct” and start operating on “systems”.
The question every company will need to answer
As AIs that work alone become commonplace, a strategic problem arises: “If your competitor is using machines to make important decisions and you are not, how long will it take for your company to catch up?”
Competition is no longer just about having more data. Now, the important thing is who can make faster decisions, with fewer problems and more success. Artificial intelligence that works alone does not take away jobs, it takes away slowness, and nowadays, slowness generates costs.
Conclusion: deciding quickly can become an important advantage
The independence of artificial intelligence does not pose a danger to the current manager. It can be a very helpful tool. Companies that manage to mix technology, management and human control well will have an advantage in the market.
If in recent years the question was “how to use AI to gain efficiency”, the new chapter is: “What business decisions are you ready to delegate to the machine?”
This answer, more than any other, will decide who will lead the business in the next decade.
