Agents of Change by Patrick Thibodeau - Autonomous agents could one day play a key role in everything from setting market prices to creating more resilient networks. Over the past year, NASA has been uploading software into the Earth Observing-1 satellite, turning it into a testbed for autonomous agents. The agents — software programs that are able to learn and can function independently — are used to manage experiments and operate the spacecraft. The effort is part of a technology initiative that researchers say will reshape IT over the course of many years. Autonomous agents have the potential to become an extraordinarily powerful technology, with the capacity to learn, experiment and act independent of human control. Agents could ultimately improve productivity, increase software reliability and change the operation of markets, particularly supply chains.