# Socio-technical aspects of Agentic AI arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2601.06064 ยท HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2601.06064/ ## Key facts - Cited by 2 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026). - Placed in General LLM agent frameworks and benchmarks, one of 16 directions in LLM agents and tool use. - Builds on 23 of its 133 references that are in the map. - First posted on arXiv 26 Dec 2025. ## Placed in - LLM agents and tool use / [General LLM agent frameworks and benchmarks](https://mlsanity.com/agents/general-llm-agent-frameworks-and-benchmarks/) ## Builds on (most cited first, 23 of 23) - [From System 1 to System 2: A Survey of Reasoning Large Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2502.17419/) (2025) - [Enhancing LLM Factual Accuracy with RAG to Counter Hallucinations: A Case Study on Domain-Specific Queries in Private Knowledge-Bases](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2403.10446/) (2024) - [Agentic AI for Scientific Discovery: A Survey of Progress, Challenges, and Future Directions](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2503.08979/) (2025) - [From AI for Science to Agentic Science: A Survey on Autonomous Scientific Discovery](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2508.14111/) (2025) - [Logical Reasoning in Large Language Models: A Survey](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2502.09100/) (2025) - [Agentic AI: A Comprehensive Survey of Architectures, Applications, and Future Directions](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2510.25445/) (2025) - [Generative to Agentic AI: Survey, Conceptualization, and Challenges](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2504.18875/) (2025) - [AI Agentic Programming: A Survey of Techniques, Challenges, and Opportunities](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2508.11126/) (2025) - [ROS-LLM: A ROS framework for embodied AI with task feedback and structured reasoning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2406.19741/) (2024) - [Toward Edge General Intelligence with Agentic AI and Agentification: Concepts, Technologies, and Future Directions](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2508.18725/) (2025) - [Agentic AI Needs a Systems Theory](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2503.00237/) (2025) - [Evolution of AI in Education: Agentic Workflows](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2504.20082/) (2025) - [Hybrid Approaches for Moral Value Alignment in AI Agents: a Manifesto](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2312.01818/) (2023) - [Agentic AI: Autonomy, Accountability, and the Algorithmic Society](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2502.00289/) (2025) - [Agentic Services Computing](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2509.24380/) (2025) - [A Survey of Multi-sensor Fusion Perception for Embodied AI: Background, Methods, Challenges and Prospects](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2506.19769/) (2025) - [UserCentrix: An Agentic Memory-augmented AI Framework for Smart Spaces](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2505.00472/) (2025) - [Resilient by Design -- Active Inference for Distributed Continuum Intelligence](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2511.07202/) (2025) - [From Large AI Models to Agentic AI: A Tutorial on Future Intelligent Communications](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2505.22311/) (2025) - [Agentic Satellite-Augmented Low-Altitude Economy and Terrestrial Networks: A Survey on Generative Approaches](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2507.14633/) (2025) - [Dynamic and Distributed Routing in IoT Networks based on Multi-Objective Q-Learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2505.00918/) (2025) - [Adaptive Budgeted Multi-Armed Bandits for IoT with Dynamic Resource Constraints](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2505.02640/) (2025) - [Redefining Elderly Care with Agentic AI: Challenges and Opportunities](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2507.14912/) (2025) ## Built on by (most cited first, 2 of 2) - [Accountable Agents in Software Engineering: An Analysis of Terms of Service and a Research Roadmap](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2605.04532/) (2026) - [Real-Time AI Service Economy: A Framework for Agentic Computing Across the Continuum](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2603.05614/) (2026) ## Abstract (arXiv) Agentic Artificial Intelligence (AI) represents a fundamental shift in the design of intelligent systems, characterized by interconnected components that collectively enable autonomous perception, reasoning, planning, action, and learning. Recent research on agentic AI has largely focused on technical foundations, including system architectures, reasoning and planning mechanisms, coordination strategies, and application-level performance across domains. However, the societal, ethical, economic, environmental, and governance implications of agentic AI remain weakly integrated into these technical treatments. This paper addresses this gap by presenting a socio-technical analysis of agentic AI that explicitly connects core technical components with societal context. We examine how architectural choices in perception, cognition, planning, execution, and memory introduce dependencies related to data governance, accountability, transparency, safety, and sustainability. To structure this analysis, we adopt the MAD-BAD-SAD construct as an analytical lens, capturing motivations, applications, and moral dilemmas (MAD); biases, accountability, and dangers (BAD); and societal impact, adoption, and design considerations (SAD). Using this lens, we analyze ethical considerations, implications, and challenges arising from contemporary agentic AI systems and assess their manifestation across emerging applications, including healthcare, education, industry, smart and sustainable cities, social services, communications and networking, and earth observation and satellite communications. The paper further identifies open challenges and suggests future research directions, framing agentic AI as an integrated socio-technical system whose behavior and impact are co-produced by algorithms, data, organizational practices, regulatory frameworks, and social norms.