Anthropic on the Thinning of Harnesses

xiaohu · x · 2026-07-19

The article discusses the trend of the harness wrapped around models thinning out. In the past, many external processes hardcoded rules based on what models couldn't do, but as capabilities improve, these assumptions quickly become outdated.

The author compares the old harness to a fixed assembly line where every station's task and handoff are pre-arranged. The new external logic, however, acts more like a 'coach' rather than an 'assembly line,' focusing less on locking down steps and more on dynamically deciding formations and organizing model collaboration based on the task.

Related event: AI Agent Architecture Reflections: Thinner Harnesses and Multi-Agent Tradeoffs(13 posts)→

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