A general agent is often sub-optimal on particular problems. However, it should be able to pick them up pretty quick. Plus, it is a general agent, with all kinds of uses.

A lot of people are interested in building generally intelligent agents. We ourselves are highly general agents - i.e. you can pay us to solve an enormous range of different problems.

Generality of intelligence does not imply lack-of-adaptedness to some particular environment. What it means is more that it can potentially handle a broad range of problems. Specialized agents - on the other hand - fail completely on problems outside their domain.