They're not AI Agents, it's just Automation: Start Here

Automate this with Make in 10 minutes (then think about AI Agents)

Before you build Agents, build these first

You can’t automate judgment before you’ve automated rules.
Start with flows. Then layer intelligence.

In this post:

1. Automation vs. Agent (what's the difference)

2. Step-by-step: Build your first automation with Make (0 cost)

3. What to Automate next

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1. Automation ≠ Agent

Let’s clear the basics.

Automation

A rule-based workflow.
Runs when conditions are met. No reasoning, just execution.

Example: New email with attachment → Upload to Drive. That’s automation.

Agent

A system powered by a language model.
Can reason, decide, and act based on goals.

Example: If an email has an attachment, decide: Is it a contract (→ legal), invoice (→ extract total) or report (→ summarize). That’s an agent.

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Tools like Make and Zapier are great for automations.
Agents need LLMs like GPT-4, Claude or Gemini.

Start with automation first.

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2. Build your first Automation in Make

We’ll log every new Google Doc into a Google Sheet.

You’ll need:

• Gmail account

• Google Drive folder (where to create new documents)

• Google Sheet (you can use this template)

• Make (free plan)

Step 1: Create a new scenario

Go to Make → Click “Create a new scenario”

Step 2: Set up a Google Docs trigger

1. Click the "+" icon

2. Search "Google Docs" → Choose “Watch Documents”

   

3. Connect your Google account

4. Pick a folder (e.g. “AI’m In”) in Folder ID section

Step 3: Add a Google Sheets module

• Add Google Sheets module → Choose “List Sheets”

• Select your spreadsheet (e.g. AI’m In template)

Step 4: Map the data

• File Name → Name

• Date → Created Time

• Link → Web View Link

Step 5: Run once to test

• Click “Run once”

• Create a new Doc → Check the sheet → Row added

• You ran your first automation. Well done 🙌

Step 6: Activate it

Click “ON” → Now it runs on schedule.
Every new doc = new row.

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3. What to Automate next

Build 3–5 flows like this:

• Form to Notion

• Tweet to Airtable

• New calendar event → Slack reminder

This helps you understand structure, limits and edge cases.

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4. Coming up

Part 2: Bypass Google’s blocks

No corporate account? No problem. Set up Make with a personal Google account, done in 5 minutes. ⏱️

Part 3: From basic Automation to AI Agent

Transform simple automation into a smart AI agent that:

• Auto-classifies files

• Instantly summarizes contracts

• Precisely extracts invoice data

• Dynamically routes workflows

Want this in your inbox? The next issue’s coming soon

Nina

Tap the heart ❤️ if this got you excited to build something.