Stop Condition

An agent loop ends one of two ways: done is reached, or a stop condition fires. Done means a goal check passes against verifiable exit criteria. When the goal is underdefined, the only remaining bound is the stop condition: a turn cap, a spend budget, a limit that fires regardless of the model’s own claim that it is finished.

A cap firing is information. A well-built loop reports which limit ended it, and either resumes with a higher one or hands off to a person with its state intact. Unattended loops carry both: a done-check and a hard cap.