Alternatives

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This guide explores alternative solutions to building agent and workflow systems in Elixir. Understanding these alternatives helps you make informed decisions about when to use Jido versus other approaches.

Built-in Elixir Solutions

Agent Module

The built-in Agent module provides simple state management without the complexity of full agent systems. Use it when you need basic state management without complex behaviors or signal routing.

{:ok, agent} = Agent.start_link(fn -> %{} end)
Agent.update(agent, fn state -> Map.put(state, :key, "value") end)

GenServer

GenServer offers process management and state machines. Choose it for direct process communication and simple request/response patterns without complex workflows.

Data Processing Frameworks

Broadway

Broadway excels at data ingestion and processing. Ideal for stream processing with back-pressure and rate limiting, without agent-based decision making.

Flow

Flow provides data-flow processing for parallel operations. Best for MapReduce-style operations when you don't need persistent agent state.

Oban

Oban offers PostgreSQL-backed job processing. Choose it for durable background jobs and scheduling without agent behaviors.

Agent Systems

Swarm.ex

Swarm.ex provides a swarm intelligence framework. Suitable for collective behavior simulations and distributed problem-solving without Jido's focus on individual agent reasoning.

When to Choose Jido

Select Jido when you need:

  1. Complex agent behaviors with multi-step reasoning
  2. Distributed intelligence with sensor-driven responses
  3. Extensible architecture with custom skills and pluggable sensors

Want to add or edit this list? Open a pull request.

For a broader list of Elixir packages, visit Awesome Elixir.