Single-agent systems have limits. One AI agent can do one task well. But real business problems are interconnected.
Why Multiple Agents?
Specialized agents are more accurate. Failures are contained. Scaling is easier. Reasoning chains are shorter (simpler agents make fewer mistakes).
The Coordinator Pattern
The most reliable multi-agent architecture uses a coordinator agent that orchestrates specialists. The coordinator decides which specialist agents to invoke, evaluates results, and decides next steps.
Communication Patterns
Synchronous (Request-Response)
Coordinator calls Agent A, waits for response, then calls Agent B. Simple but slower.
Asynchronous (Queue-Based)
Coordinator puts tasks on queues. Faster at scale but harder to debug.
Pub-Subscribe
When Agent A completes, any listening agent can react. Maximum decoupling.
Designing for Resilience
Fail fast, fail safe. Use circuit breaker pattern. Timeouts are non-negotiable. Audit everything.