loop

name	loop
description	Create and manage simple heartbeat automations attached to the current Codex thread. Use when Jason invokes $loop or asks this thread to keep going, check again, follow up, retry, monitor, or resume on a recurring cadence.
last_edited	2026-06-15T00:00:00.000Z

Loop

Turn a plain-English request into a heartbeat on the current thread with as little ceremony as possible.

Set Up The Loop

1. Infer the task from the request and current thread. Infer the stop condition when one is clear.
2. Decide whether a heartbeat is useful. Use one when the work benefits from returning to this thread after time passes or external state may change; continue immediately instead when the task can simply be finished now.
3. Use the requested cadence when sensible. Otherwise choose a cadence from the task's expected feedback latency, urgency, cost, and risk of noisy empty runs. Do not poll faster than the underlying state can plausibly change.
4. Choose a short verb-led name and a self-contained task prompt. Put the work, its completion condition, and this terminal behavior in the prompt:
   • when the completion condition is met, rename the current thread to done: <short task name> using the thread-title tool without inventing a thread ID;
   • report the completed result and stop the loop. Keep timing and thread-target details in the automation fields.
5. Call the automation tool with:
   • mode=create
   • kind=heartbeat
   • destination=thread
   • status=ACTIVE
   • the inferred name, prompt, and rrule
6. After creation succeeds, rename the current thread to loop: <short task name> using the thread-title tool without inventing a thread ID.
7. Return only the loop name, cadence, and what it will do.

Do not create a new thread, invent a thread ID, or substitute a detached cron job. Do not expose raw RRULE syntax to Jason.

Use Judgment

• Ask when the task, cadence, stop condition, deadline, or notification behavior is materially ambiguous. Prefer the built-in user-question tool when it is available; otherwise ask one concise direct question.
• When asking about cadence, offer a small set of task-appropriate choices and recommend one. Do not make Jason translate the task into scheduling jargon.
• If the ambiguity is minor, make a reasonable assumption and state it instead of interrupting setup.
• Treat “loop,” “keep going,” and “check again” as authorization to create the heartbeat requested in that message.
• Preserve explicit deadlines, notification requirements, and stop conditions.
• Keep the lifecycle prefixes exact: loop: while active and done: after successful completion.
• Rename to done: only after successful completion, not after a failed run, pause, or temporary retry.
• Prefer updating an existing matching automation over creating a duplicate.
• For inspect, pause, resume, change, or delete requests, resolve the existing automation and use the corresponding automation-tool mode while preserving fields the user did not change. Restore the loop: title when resuming.
• If the automation tool is unavailable, say so plainly. Never emit a raw automation directive as a workaround.