Agent Failure Modes
The fifteen ways a production agent fails, the trace signature that names each, the detector and its blind spot, the per-run response, and the fix order by blast radius.
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After this section you can
- Name a failure from its trace signature
- Choose a detector and state its blind spot
- Choose the response and the fix order by blast radius
09
Agent Failure Modes
Name a failing agent from its trace, pick a detector and know its blind spot, and choose the response before the incident.
Key idea
A failing agent leaves a signature in its trace: the same call again, a token count that climbs, an error read as text, or a finished answer with no action behind it. Name the signature, choose a detector and know what it misses, then decide the response.
Five places to look in one failing run
Blue is input, amber the model's decision, teal the places to look. The dashed branch is the model stopping. The figure pans sideways on a phone.