What is the primary operational difference between a standard LLM call and an Agentic workflow that utilizes a 'ReAct' loop?

A standard Large Language Model call is a linear, one-way process where the model receives an input prompt and generates a single completion based entirely on its internal training data. In contrast, an Agentic workflow using a ReAct loop transforms the model into an autonomous decision-maker that functions through a repeating cycle of reasoning and action. ....