How to configure EXECUTION.pipeline models, modes, thresholds, and fallbacks

Use this guide when the agent execution pipeline exists but needs tuning for model choice, mode, confidence thresholds, tool filtering, keyword veto, intent bridging, and fallback behavior.

Concept

EXECUTION.pipeline configuration is a set of routing controls. It does not replace the supervisor’s handoff rules. Instead, it helps the runtime decide how aggressively to use classification before the normal reasoning path. The effective pipeline configuration is resolved from agent-level settings, project-level settings, and defaults. Agent settings can override project settings for the same field. Project settings can fill fields the agent does not specify. Defaults fill the rest. The pipeline is disabled by default, and an agent-level opt-out remains a veto even when the project is enabled.

Minimal working example

Use this when you only need to enable the execution pipeline and keep the first deployment conservative.

AGENT: Pipeline_Minimal_Agent
GOAL: "Answer support questions with execution pipeline assistance"

EXECUTION:
  pipeline:
    enabled: true
    mode: sequential
    shortCircuit:
      enabled: true
      confidenceThreshold: 0.9

COMPLETE:
  - WHEN: true
    RESPOND: "I can help with your support request."

This example enables the pipeline, keeps mode predictable with sequential, and allows short-circuiting only at high confidence.

Full configuration example

Treat this as a separate project-level routing example from the minimal agent above.

SUPERVISOR: Insurance_Router
GOAL: "Route insurance requests with tuned classifier thresholds and fallbacks"
PERSONA: "Careful insurance routing supervisor"

EXECUTION:
  pipeline:
    enabled: true
    mode: parallel
    model: "gpt-4.1-mini"
    shortCircuit:
      enabled: true
      confidenceThreshold: 0.92
    toolFilter:
      enabled: true
      maxTools: 3
    keywordVeto:
      enabled: true
      keywords: ["appeal", "fraud", "legal"]
    intentBridge:
      enabled: true
      programmaticThreshold: 0.88
      guidedThreshold: 0.6
      outOfScopeDecline: false
      multiIntentSignal: true

HANDOFF:
  - TO: Claims_Agent
    WHEN: "The user asks to file, check, or update a claim"
    SUMMARY: "User needs claims support"
  - TO: Benefits_Agent
    WHEN: "The user asks about coverage, eligibility, benefits, or plan rules"
    SUMMARY: "User needs benefits support"
  - TO: Escalation_Agent
    WHEN: "The user mentions appeals, fraud, legal risk, or a complaint"
    SUMMARY: "User may need escalation review"

AGENT: Claims_Agent
GOAL: "Help members with claim filing and claim status"
PERSONA: "Claims support specialist"

AGENT: Benefits_Agent
GOAL: "Explain plan benefits, coverage, and eligibility"
PERSONA: "Benefits specialist"

AGENT: Escalation_Agent
GOAL: "Handle escalations, complaints, appeals, and risk-sensitive requests"
PERSONA: "Escalation specialist"

How it works

mode controls how the pipeline work is organized. Use sequential when you want simpler, more predictable behavior. Use parallel when your deployment is tuned for faster classification and filtering paths. model chooses the classifier model. Prefer a model that is strong enough for category decisions but inexpensive enough for every turn where the pipeline runs. shortCircuit.confidenceThreshold controls when a single classified intent can bypass broader reasoning. Higher thresholds reduce misroutes but may send more traffic to guided reasoning. toolFilter.maxTools limits how many tools remain visible after filtering. Use it when the agent has many tools or routing tools and the classifier can narrow the relevant set. keywordVeto.keywords prevents short-circuiting when sensitive words appear. These words should reflect business risk, not just common nouns. intentBridge.programmaticThreshold and intentBridge.guidedThreshold split routing into deterministic, guided, and autonomous behavior. Defaults exist, but production values should be tuned from real traffic. Since none of the HANDOFF entries in the full configuration example declare HISTORY, each specialist now receives the full conversation history by default (the current platform default when HISTORY is omitted).

Common variations

Variation	Use when	Configuration focus
Conservative launch	Misroutes are expensive or the category set is new.	`mode: sequential`, high `confidenceThreshold`, keyword veto enabled.
Low-latency routing	You have measured latency budget and strong monitoring.	`mode: parallel`, small tool set, tuned thresholds.
Classifier-assisted but not autonomous	The classifier should guide reasoning but not route alone.	Keep `guidedThreshold` lower than `programmaticThreshold`.
Sensitive-topic routing	Legal, fraud, cancellation, refund, or complaint paths need extra review.	Add `keywordVeto.keywords` and escalation routes.
Agent opt-out	Project enables the pipeline but one agent is not ready.	Set agent-level `pipeline.enabled: false` and verify effective config.

Configuration checklist

Setting	Start with	Tighten when
`mode`	`sequential`	You have latency evidence and monitoring for `parallel`
`shortCircuit.confidenceThreshold`	High, such as `0.9` or above	Misroutes are more expensive than slower routing
`programmaticThreshold`	Higher than guided threshold	Direct routing or decline must be conservative
`guidedThreshold`	Middle confidence range	You want classifier help without full automation
`keywordVeto.keywords`	Sensitive terms and side-effect terms	Compliance, refund, legal, fraud, or cancellation risk grows
`toolFilter.maxTools`	Small enough to reduce noise	Tool lists become large or overlapping

Verification

Validate the ABL and confirm the pipeline block compiles into execution settings.
Compare effective config when only project settings exist, only agent settings exist, and both exist.
Test confidence just below and at guidedThreshold.
Test confidence just below and at programmaticThreshold.
Test keywordVeto with each sensitive keyword.
Test agent opt-out when the project pipeline is enabled.
Inspect traces for selected mode, classifier model, thresholds, veto, and tiered action.

Production readiness checklist

Project-level and agent-level pipeline settings are documented together.
Thresholds are chosen from real utterance samples and reviewed after launch.
Escalation or fallback exists for sensitive and ambiguous categories.
Keyword veto terms are reviewed for false positives and false negatives.
Tool filtering does not hide tools needed for safe recovery.
Dashboards track tier distribution, short-circuit rate, guided rate, autonomous rate, and fallback rate.

Common mistakes

Mistake	Why it happens	How to avoid it
Lowering programmatic threshold too far	It increases automation	Keep direct routing conservative until measured
Using keyword veto as a routing rule	Veto only blocks short-circuiting	Keep routing logic in handoff rules and categories
Assuming agent opt-in is enough	Runtime has project-level gate behavior	Verify effective config in the deployed project
Filtering tools too aggressively	Smaller tool lists look cleaner	Test failure recovery and edge cases

Troubleshooting

Symptom	Likely cause	What to check
Agent config is ignored	Project pipeline is disabled or absent	Compare agent, project, and effective config
Guided behavior happens too often	Programmatic threshold is too high or categories are weak	Review classifier confidence and category distinctness
Direct routing happens too often	Thresholds are too low or veto terms are missing	Raise thresholds and add sensitive veto words
Tool choice gets worse	`toolFilter.maxTools` is too small	Increase max tools or improve tool descriptions

How to use EXECUTION.pipeline for agent routing, classification, and short-circuiting.

​Concept

​Minimal working example

​Full configuration example

​How it works

​Common variations

​Configuration checklist

​Verification

​Production readiness checklist

​Common mistakes

​Troubleshooting

​Related articles