Speculation

Speculation is a way to make an agent feel faster by predicting what it's about to do next and getting a head start on it - similar in spirit to branch prediction in a processor. It's optional, controllable at every level, and defaults to the cheap, safe setting.

The two modes

• Reads (the default). The system predicts an agent's next read-only action - opening a file, checking a calendar - from the pattern of what it's already done, and warms that read ahead of time. This mode never spends any model tokens on a guess, so there's no cost risk: it either saves time, or it doesn't help and costs nothing.
• Turns. When a tool's result is genuinely predictable, the system can go further and start the next model response speculatively, before the tool call it depends on has even finished. If the guess turns out right, you get the answer sooner; if it turns out wrong, the speculative work is discarded ("squashed") and redone properly. This mode does spend tokens on guesses, including ones that get thrown away, so it trades some extra cost for speed.

Staying in control of cost

Turns-mode speculation is never on by default for a new agent, and it respects limits at every level: your own account has a master switch with a kill switch and a running total of what speculation has cost you this month, and (on a team) an admin can cap or forbid it entirely, including by model. Whichever limit is strictest wins.

If you want the speed benefit without any spend risk at all, reads-mode alone already gets you most of it - turn on turns-mode only for agents where a slightly wrong guess is cheap to redo.

What's next

• Set an org-wide ceiling on speculation if you're managing a team.
• Watch your spend to see how much speculation is actually costing.