{"slug":"ralph-task-file-loop","href":"/entries/ralph-task-file-loop","api":"/api/v1/entries/ralph-task-file-loop","title":"Ralph / task-file agent loop","type":"principle","status":"active","certainty":"reported","claim":"A Ralph loop repeatedly invokes an agent while unchecked tasks remain in a durable task file, pushing against early stopping. reported [@vidal2026serious-agentic]","mechanism":"reported [@vidal2026serious-agentic] Canonical sketch: while grep finds unchecked boxes in TASKS.md, invoke the agent with a fixed prompt. Anthropic surface: /ralph-loop.\n\nMapping to Memory–Goal–State: Memory = repo + scratchpad; Goal = checkboxes driven to zero (plus any oracles those tasks encode); State = the task file itself.\n\nPurpose: counteract RL-trained early stopping. The loop externalizes continuation pressure into the filesystem so compaction and new sessions still see unfinished work.\n\nVariants include per-surface boards (e.g. firmware vs mobile) and status markers beyond [ ]/[x].","quantities":[],"limits":"Without verifiable task completion criteria, checkbox closure itself becomes a reward-hackable signal. Human triage still required for high-cost tasks.","inventor_note":"","sources":[{"key":"vidal2026serious-agentic","note":"Ralph / task-file loops; Anthropic /ralph-loop mention"}],"links":["memory-goal-state-loop","scratchpad-durable-memory","agentic-alignment-problem"],"relations":[{"slug":"memory-goal-state-loop","rel":"related"},{"slug":"scratchpad-durable-memory","rel":"related"},{"slug":"agentic-alignment-problem","rel":"related"}],"topics":[{"id":"agentic-engineering","title":"Agentic engineering"}],"created_at":"2026-10-01T19:14:49.307Z","updated_at":"2026-10-01T19:14:49.307Z"}