An AI database agent should not turn one confusing question into an infinite retry loop.
When a query fails, a schema changed, a policy blocks access, or a model cannot resolve ambiguity, the safe answer is not:
“Try again forever.”
The safe answer is:
Stop. Preserve the evidence. Put the item somewhere inspectable.
For MCP database workflows, a dead-letter record should include:
- original user request
- tool name and parameters
- policy/scope decision
- query ID if one exists
- error type
- retry count
- model/tool output snapshot
- next human-readable action
A timeout can retry.
A missing tenant scope should not.
A write approval failure should not.
An ambiguous metric definition should not.
Longer version: Dead-letter queues for AI database agents
Agent reliability is not “never fail.” It is failing in a way the team can inspect and recover from.
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