# Agentic Loop

> The observe-decide-act-observe cycle an agent repeats until its task is complete.

_The Agentic Web Lexicon · /glossary/agentic-loop · [JSON](/api/glossary/agentic-loop) · [all The Agentic Web Lexicon](/glossary)_

- **term:** Agentic Loop
- **category:** core
- **short_def:** The observe-decide-act-observe cycle an agent repeats until its task is complete.
- **long_def:** Each turn the agent reads the current state, decides on the next action (often a tool call), takes it, and incorporates the result. The loop ends when the goal is reached, a budget is exhausted, or the agent asks for input.
- **see_also:** ai-agent, tool-use
- **etymology_origin:** — (verify-against-primary-at-build)
- **related_to:** ai-agent, tool-use, agent-experience
- **contrast_with:** Unlike a single prompt-and-response, the agentic loop repeats — each tool result feeds the next decision — until a goal, budget or human checkpoint stops it.
- **example:** An agent debugging code runs an agentic loop: read error, edit file, run tests, read result, repeat — iterating until the tests pass.
- **source:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OODA_loop
- **status:** active
- **why_it_matters:** The agentic loop explains why agents fetch a page multiple times and why clear, stateful, machine-readable responses (not one-shot HTML) make a site agent-friendly.
- **sameAs:** —
- **bridge_entity:** agentic-web
- **last_verified:** 2026-06-15
- **md_twin:** /glossary/agentic-loop.md