Prompts Aren't Real

Dan, a 25-year-old engineer from Los Angeles, is building production-ready agents that perform tasks for users, aiming for a minimally embarrassing experience. He notes that while LLMs appear reliable, they frequently violate structured output constraints—such as exceeding an 80-character title limit—requiring constant monitoring. The article highlights the tension between the promise of AI agents and the practical difficulties of ensuring consistent, trustworthy behavior.