On building AI agents and accidentally understanding yourself
Introduction
We tend to believe that intelligence is the ultimate differentiator that if we think clearly enough, know enough, and work hard enough, success follows. It's a comforting idea. It's also incomplete.
I didn't fully understand that until I started building AI agents.
Specifically, it hit me while designing the Harness layer for a Digital Worker (AI Agent) the architectural component responsible for orchestrating tasks, managing priorities, regulating execution, and keeping the agent coherent across complex, multi-step workflows. The Harness isn't the brain. It isn't the memory. It's the discipline layer the scaffolding that ensures raw capability actually translates into reliable output.
