Pattern Category · 03
The execution arc for a network of agents. Governing principle: trust doesn't transfer automatically. When an orchestrator spawns a subagent, the human's original consent does not silently extend to that subagent's actions, scope, or authority.
Before the orchestrator starts, the human must understand who is in the agent network, what each subagent is authorized to do, and how the agents relate to each other. Consent to run the orchestrator is not consent to run every subagent it may spawn. Show the full topology before the run begins.
Required components
When the orchestrator spawns a subagent during a run, that spawn event is itself a consent boundary. A mid-run gate interrupts the flow and requires the human to explicitly authorize the delegation — the new agent's purpose, scope, and what it will have access to — before it can begin operating.
Required components
Multi-agent runs don't execute linearly. Subagents run in parallel, block on dependencies, wait for human approvals, and fail independently. The execution state surface must show the full network simultaneously — who is running, who is blocked, who has completed, and whether any node has failed in a way that affects overall run validity.
Required components
When one agent hands off to another, the human must be able to inspect exactly what was transferred: context carried forward, instructions included, scope granted, and any constraints attached to the delegation. The handoff receipt is a first-class record, not a log entry. It must be inspectable on demand, not reconstructed after the fact.
Required components