Short answer
Chat is for work you ask Moby to do now. An Automation is recurring work that Moby runs on a schedule.
Details
Use Moby chat when you want a one-time answer, analysis, or action. Use an Automation when the same work should happen repeatedly, such as every morning, every Monday, or at the end of each month.
A common pattern is to refine the analysis in chat first, then ask Moby to turn the final version into an Automation.
Each Automation has its own conversation thread. The thread keeps the Automation’s instructions, scheduled runs, outputs, and refinements in one place. You can update the Automation by telling Moby what to change in that thread.
What to do next
If you have a recurring task, ask Moby to turn it into an Automation. Include what should run, how often it should run, and where the output should go.