Work
Build the brake before the engine: an approval pipeline as your first bots
New bot teams hire specialists first and add safety later, if ever.
What hurt
Adam Magus (@AdamMagus_) runs a 26-bot "house" and says his first bot did no work at all: it decided what everyone else was allowed to do. He credits the design to @immortalhowwl's control masterclass. Not affiliated with xAI.
What to install or create
Three folders (inbox, approved, blocked) and roles: a Worker that writes proposals but never acts, a veto bot that approves, revises or rejects, an Executor that acts only on packets in the approved folder, and an Auditor that compares results with the approval. Test it with a fake bank-detail change (must be rejected) and a harmless task (must pass). Standing rules go in each bot's description; today's job goes in the message.
Bots
Veto bot
Reads packets and approves, revises, rejects, or escalates to you.
Executor
Acts only on approved packets.
Auditor
Checks what happened against what was approved.
Plugins
None on day one. Follow the first-run steps.
Routines
None on the first run. Watch one manual pass first.
The prompt
This is a tip, not a pasteable system prompt. The author did not publish one. Follow the first-run steps.
First run
- 1Read https://x.com/AdamMagus_/status/2108564610550796388 (credit @AdamMagus_).
- 2Create inbox, approved and blocked folders that every bot can see.
- 3Make one veto bot the only writer to the approved folder, and an executor that reads only from it.
- 4Run two tests: a fake bank-detail change (should be rejected) and a harmless task (should pass).
- 5Add specialists only after the brake works, and fewer than you think.
Approval fence
Anything that could shop, book, send or post waits for an approved packet, and some decisions are reserved for a human.
What to tweak
Control never executes. The Worker never approves its own plan. The Executor never widens scope.
Source
Adam Magus @AdamMagus_ · Original post
Not affiliated with xAI. We did not write this prompt. Third-party template terms still apply.
Pro pack
Solo-founder ops desk: one morning note, four gates
Three bots run the back office of a one-person company or side business: a morning note of what changed, a Friday keep/fix/cut review, and wake-ups only for money, publishing, sending as you, or anything irreversible.