Classify an item into a known class, then run the specialist execute path for that class.
What It Is
Classify-execute is a two-stage technique for handling mixed work. A classify step assigns an item to a known class or route from a bounded set of labels. An execute step then runs the specialist path for that class—often a tighter prompt, model, or tool set tuned to that route. Classify-execute is not the whole factory runtime, and it is not one agent that both decides the class and does the work in a single undifferentiated pass.
Why It Matters
When one prompt tries to handle every class at once, mixed-intent failures are common: the agent hedges, picks the wrong tools, or blends instructions that belong to different routes. Narrowing the label space first lets each execute path use a tighter prompt, model, or tool set for its class. That separation reduces mixed-intent failures compared with one prompt optimized for every class at once, so triage stays cheap and specialized doing stays focused.
How It Works
Classify-execute runs as a short handoff chain. Intake accepts an item that still needs a route. Classify assigns that item to one label from a bounded set of known classes—not an open-ended freeform guess. The matching execute path then runs with the specialist prompt, model, or tools for that class. When the item completes under that path, the chain ends. When no class fits, escalate instead of forcing a weak label or inventing a catch-all executor that tries to do every job.
Compared To Nearby Techniques
Planner-executor chooses or enqueues the next work item for a factory run; classify-execute already has an item and asks which specialist path should run it. Writer-reviewer is a quality-gated write → review → revise loop; classify-execute is a triage-then-specialist handoff, not a revise cycle. Workqueue-executor drains or organizes queued work across a backlog; classify-execute routes one item into a class and runs that class’s path. Those nearby techniques solve different factory jobs and are not the same pattern as classify then execute.