Why Can Agent and Workflow Be Unified in a Single Architecture?

This year, we’re seeing a noticeable shift at the AI application layer - from workflow-based automation toward autonomous agents. Tools like n8n and Dify represent the former, while OpenClaw, Hermes, and CoWork are early examples of the latter. That said, new paradigms rarely replace old ones outright. often, they evolve by absorbing and reshaping what came before - a kind of “sublation” rather than simple replacement. In my previous article on our new technology stack AmphiLoop, I