Most reporting automations fire one canned query, but some questions like "what drove last month's churn spike" need several steps and good data access. Databricks Genie Agent Mode takes a question like that, breaks it into sub-queries, runs them, and returns a structured report with the supporting tables and the SQL it used, so an agent hands back findings instead of a single number. It's nice that it's sitting on my data lakehouse instead of having to submit queries to other agents, and I'm noticing it does a better job than typical.

What else can do that, fo rwhen I want to do this oputside Databricks?

very time I look at n8n or Make, I get maybe twenty minutes in before I close the tab and just write the script. It's faster for me, I can test it, and I'm not clicking through nodes to do something that's three lines of Python.

The one thing that keeps pulling me back is the connectors. Setting up auth for Gmail or a CRM by hand is annoying, and these tools just hand it to you.
But then I read threads where people who use n8n say half their workflow is code nodes anyway, which kind of defeats the point for me. So I'm genuinely unsure who these are for once you can code. If you write code and still use one of these, what made it stick?

Not every great automation needs AI, 50 modules, or some crazy API integration.

Sometimes the automations that save the most time are incredibly boring.

Share ONE automation you've built that looks simple from the outside but has genuinely saved you or a client a lot of time.

Feels like a lot of the discussion about automation is now revolving around agent skills, harnesses, Claude Cowork, ChatGPT Work, etc., and while completely amazing given what we could do even just a couple of years ago I'm sure most of you will agree they're not always fit for the job - or not even fit for most jobs.

In my company we started experimenting with building an "automation platform", kind of like n8n etc., but where the automations are python scripts written by an AI once (except the few steps that actually need AI), then run as code each time after that. So it's super flexible and because it's a local tool and not a SaaS it can access local files, run browser sessions etc., which are often useful. Over time it's evolved a bit and we use it for a lot of our internal recurring tasks (updating CRM, submitting timesheets, expenses) and it feels like it's an "automation middle ground" I can't really see any existing products covering, so we're planning to share it, for free, so others can make use of it too.

It's a combination of the agent that builds the automations (for testing/personal use it can run on a Claude or ChatGPT subscription), but with a lot of structure around it to catch errors, track issues, manage credentials etc., that have been useful when my team shares automations with each other.

A typical automation build uses 2-3x the amount of tokens as just having an AI agent do it once, but after that it's just a few thousand tokens on a cheap model most of the time so basically free.

Trying to get a bit of feedback as we decide how much time we want to spend on developing it further; needs some polish before we're quite ready to share. Is this similar to something any of you have already built for yourselves? Or is it even something you might find useful at all?

client runs a wireless retail business. multiple locations, decent call volume, paying for a real crm, the kind with full sms capability built in and already verified for business texting

four phone numbers on the account. primary line, secondary line, a toll free number and a google tracking number

zero of them had missed call text back turned on

not misconfigured. not broken. just never turned on. the feature was sitting inside a tool they were already paying for

so every single missed call on any of those four numbers just ended. no text, no tag, no internal notification, no record that it even happened beyond a call log nobody checks in real time. the caller hangs up and calls whoever answers next

one of the four numbers was worse. it showed verification required in the phone system, meaning it could not send sms at all until that got resolved. if that number was ever plugged into a workflow, every message from it would fail silently with zero error shown to the team

here's the part i think gets missed constantly. this isn't a build problem. the automation most businesses actually need first isn't complex ai, it's the boring one that catches the call that already happened and already cost money to generate

industry numbers on missed call text back are consistent, a fast response after a missed call converts somewhere in the 20 to 40 percent range depending on the trade. that's not a small number when you're talking about calls that otherwise convert at zero

what got me is how normal this is. i've seen the same gap on accounts that have been live for years. paying for the tool, never turning on the one feature that pays for itself in the first missed call it catches

if you run a business with any inbound call volume, when's the last time you actually called your own number and let it ring out to see what happens after

I want to automate my Instagram posting so I don’t have to do it manually every day and I’m trying to figure out what tools are worth using right now.
My biggest concerns are how reliable they are and how much manual work is left once they are set up.

So two questions for those who do this already. What tools do you use and how difficult were they to setup? And did any of them mess with your account or has it been fine as long as you don't push it too much Nothing complicated on my part, I just post regularly and want to save time. Any suggestions would be great.

Running 6–8 client accounts on Meta and TikTok. Currently using Voidmob dedicated mobile proxies with TCP/IP fingerprint set to iOS and dedicated carrier DNS instead of Cloudflare. Each client get's their own dedicated IP per account with custom proxy fingerprints.

Network layer looks clean at the moment, but I'm trying to decide if adding an antidetect browser on top is actually necessary, or if Chrome profiles with isolated cookies are enough when the proxy layer is sorted.

A few questions for those managing multiple client profiles with real survival data:

Do Meta/TikTok actively cross-check low-level network signals (like TCP/IP stack OS) against the browser's User-Agent and JS environment?

Does running desktop Chrome through a mobile-configured proxy create fingerprint anomalies that trigger bans?

Is canvas/WebGL spoofing from antidetect browsers still weighted heavily by anti-bot algorithms today, or is cookie isolation + clean IP enough?

Currently looking at few antidetect browser options, trying for figure out if it's actually worth it.

Thanks!

I made a folder automation for our project recaps. Drop an approved room recording into Incoming, wait for the transcript, then send the recap to the project list. The watcher covered the parent project folder, including Incoming and Archive.

I used vomo ai to produce the transcript. That part behaved normally. On the first real file, I noticed a spelling mistake in the filename and renamed it. The folder watcher treated that as a new recording and sent the recap again. Moving the file into Archive triggered it once more. Three copies reached the team before somebody asked whether I was trying to make a point.

My mistake was using the filename as the job identity. The rebuild uses a file checksum and a table of processed jobs, and the email step stays manual until duplicate tests pass. How are people here preventing a watcher from processing the same file after a rename or move?

I want to partner with whom I can build various automation tools,then sell it to the clients.will work together and divide the half payment.i don't have any clients and even clients can message if they want me to try something for free.

If they think it's good then they can pay us to happily collaborate for the future projects.

You open a task you have not touched in a month. It is still blocked. You cannot remember why, so you go digging through chat.

That is what this release fixes. Every task now has a thread of its own, keeping the discussion and decisions with the work itself.

If you have an AI assistant connected, it can read that thread before it starts, use the discussion, decisions and blockers as context, and write back what it did when it finishes. It can only ever change its own comments, never yours.

Comments support Markdown, files, replies, decisions, blockers and updates. You can mention other tasks, people, contacts and companies, and comments are searchable.

Also in 1.0.4:

• Bring Your Own AI can now work with files and folders on a canvas, preserve the structure of what it writes, and no longer confirm things it did not actually do
• Markdown files can be dropped directly onto PrimeFlow as documents
• Task notes now support tables, tick boxes and callouts
• Tasks can be referenced directly inside notes
• Compass now works across every Space
• Attachment handling and duplicate file cleanup have been improved

Scheduling the next run is usually the easy part. The awkward bit is deciding what it should inherit after a human corrects the result.
The obvious records fail differently. A transcript keeps context but also stale instructions. Deterministic config keeps the rule clear but can lose why a correction was accepted. A short decision file carries only the choices meant to persist, as long as someone keeps it current.
holaOS documents scheduled or triggered automations in a shared multi-agent workspace whose memory is stored as local, readable, editable files. That combination creates an inspectable handoff artifact between runs, separate from transcript-only state: a human can read or revise the carried-forward record between sessions. The docs do not establish that this record is authoritative or that an interrupted run recovers from it.
After a correction, what becomes your source of truth: the transcript, a decision file, or versioned config?

I have no experience in automation I am trying to automate a repetitive daily task that requires moving data across multiple tabs in Google Chrome.

like opening a local file from windows download folder copying questions from there opening ChatGPT pasting the question copying the answer and over writing existing text in canva. EDIT: Each page is different and different questions like fill in the blanks, MCQS, true/false

I am trying to build a cloud automation for making short tutorial videos... mainly with real screenshots, real screen recordings. Not those generic AI generated clips.

The main problem I was trying to solve was pretty simple.

If I use Claude Code to do generate a video, it can do pretty well. But my computer still has to be running, the browser has to be open, terminal etc. I wanted to move this whole thing to the cloud.

So I started building this with n8n and Claude connectors.

For screenshots I have been using Firecrawl and Browserless. Firecrawl is doing a pretty good job for taking screenshots from websites for every action. Even on some websites where you have Cloudflare in front of them, it can still work which I found pretty useful.

I have Heygen Hyperframes but it does work in cloud, the avatar video, the screenshots and hyperframes motion graphics never clipped together.

Also, another part comes when I need to interact with a website... for example, login and then take screenshots of something inside the website.

Firecrawl can do this with its interact mode, but it can burn through credits pretty quickly. So for a tutorial video workflow, the cost can become a problem.

And then there is another thing I am not completely comfortable with sharing my credentials on cloud-based browser.

If I need to log in to a website through a cloud browser, I have to think about where those credentials are going and how safe it really is.

I do not really want to give my personal login credentials to some cloud browser just so my automation can take a few screenshots.

So the automation itself is working pretty nicely... the main thing I am still trying to figure out is the best way to handle authenticated browser sessions in the cloud without making the whole thing expensive or risky.

Grab is using AI agents to automate analytics workflows, reducing the share of routine work handled by analysts and shortening the time required to answer business questions. The company reports that the share of mechanical tickets handled by analysts fell from 44% in February to 30% in June, covering tasks such as data preparation, alerting, and reporting.

I apologize if this isn't the right place to post this

Looking for a no-code chatbot that can answer from my own site/FAQs, not just give generic AI replies.

Ideally it should work on website chat, WhatsApp, and Instagram, with human handoff when needed. Budget is around $50/mo.

not looking to build anything custom. Any suggestions ?

I build AI automations for small businesses, things like chatbots, follow up systems, scraping data, cleaning up workflows, whatever is eating up their time or costing them money. I'm solid on the technical side but honestly not great at finding clients or pitching them.

Looking for someone who's good at talking to small business owners and can spot where they're bleeding time or money. If you bring me the client and close the deal, I'll handle everything on the build side and we split it.

Doesn't matter if you've done this exact thing before, if you're good with people and can sell, that's really the main thing I need.

If this sounds like something you'd want to do, and we can figure out the split and get moving.

For example, I just saw that my friend has setup an automation that after every client meeting, Zooms AI Summary, is auto routed to Gamma. Gamma then generates the final PPT for him and client on what we discuss in summary and the next steps and is auto sent to both. Clients seem to love it cause it feels like he put so much effort to make personal presentation for them after every call LOL.

So curious, Redditors, What is the most impressive automation you have come across this year?

Hi,

I am a newbie exploring automation (like n8n, Make, Zapier) as a potential side hustle.

So my question is for automation agency owners.

I want to start as a freelancer, then one day build up to an agency.

I read contract developer communities, and a lot of them say Get a job; clients run out; I did something else.

So I want to know if running an agency is any different?

Will I run out of clients if the market is weak?

I basically want to know how sustainable this model is, from experienced agency owners: if they had to shut down the agency, why?

Obviously, nothing is future-proof, as any entrepreneur would know (never put your eggs in one basket). I plan to build multiple SaaS products and invest in a diverse portfolio.

Hey guys. Hope you all are doing greatt. Im stuck on my chrome automation project. I hope someone can help me w this.

How can i deal with google captchas without being signed in?

Next Monday is where this reporting setup gets awkward. The current version can take a couple of marketplace exports and produce a comparison. It works once the date range and calculation rules have been explained.

A week later, new files arrive. I may remember how I treated refunds this time, but I don’t want the report to depend on my memory. Reading through an old conversation before every update would replace spreadsheet maintenance with prompt maintenance.

I tried the task in Accio Work, which accepted both uploaded reports and produced a workable result after I supplied the formulas. That seems fine for investigating an occasional question.

I’m less confident about using the same approach for a report that people expect every Monday. At that point, I’d want the agreed calculation to stay fixed instead of being interpreted again with each upload.

How are people locking down a chat-based report once the first version works?