Outcome-based prompting
Asking an AI agent to pursue a specified change for a user or system, with evidence and boundaries, instead of merely producing a named deliverable.
A dashboard request can become a decision-support request. The outcome must be observable, the authority must be bounded, and missing data should be explicit.
Not every task needs altitude. Narrow edits, intentionally exploratory creative work and unobservable outcomes may be better handled with a bounded deliverable.
Connected
- Altitude, depth and rangeFelix Rieseberg’s framework for ambition with AI models: speed repeats work faster, altitude targets outcomes, depth uses expert instruments and range combines disciplines.
- Agent evaluationRepeatable testing of an AI agent's complete task, tool use, permissions and final system state against explicit acceptance criteria. A successful demo is not a production reliability estimate.
- AI outside judgeAn acceptance check outside an agent’s self-assessment, such as a deterministic test, held-out evaluation, measurement or separately briefed reviewer.
Field notes that cover Outcome-based prompting
More concepts & methods
- machine learningscientific study of algorithms and statistical models that computer systems use to perform tasks without explicit instructions
- deep learningspecialized form of machine learning that uses artificial neural networks to identify patterns in data
- genetic algorithmcompetitive algorithm for searching a problem space
- Multidisciplinary agent reviewA workflow in which specialist passes apply distinct methods and produce concrete evidence, rather than merely imitate expert personas.
- Prompt injectionAn attempt to make an AI system follow instructions embedded in untrusted material such as email, documents or websites instead of the authorized user’s task.
- Accessibility testingEvaluation of digital accessibility through automated checks, knowledgeable manual assessment and research with people with different access needs. Conformance evaluation and usability research provide complementary evidence.