> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.icustomer.ai/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.icustomer.ai/iharness/autonomy-levels.md). # Autonomy levels The three autonomy modes, Ask, Propose, and Auto: defined by what the system can spend, not by a marketing scale. iHarness runs at one of three autonomy levels. The levels are not a mood setting; each one is defined by what the system is allowed to spend, credits, sends, budget, your audience's attention. ## The three modes | Mode | What it does | Spend | | ----------- | -------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------ | | **Ask** | Reads, diagnoses, explains. Proposes nothing unprompted. | Spend verbs are absent | | **Propose** | Raises cards, stages work, and waits for your click. | Present, but gated on your approval | | **Auto** | Completes an arc without a human. | Full, within caps and behind a kill switch | ## Absence is a stronger guarantee than a gate The distinction that matters most is between Ask and everything else. In Ask mode the ability to spend is not gated behind an approval; it is not there at all. A gate can be misconfigured; an absent capability cannot fire. That is why diagnosis and explanation are always safe to ask for, at any level. ## Where the levels meet your day **Propose** is where approvals live: staged work arrives as cards in [Pulse](/pulse/queue.md), and nothing moves until you click. **Auto** is bounded, not blind: caps limit what an arc can spend, the kill switch stops everything, and every decision still writes its [trace](/concepts/decisions-and-traces.md) before it runs. The per-tool controls that shape all three levels are covered in [Gates](/iharness/gates.md), and the practice of widening autonomy as judgment proves out is covered in [Autopilot vs approval-first](/pulse/autopilot-vs-approval-first.md). --- # Agent Instructions This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com. ## Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the following URL with the `ask` and `goal` query parameters: ``` GET https://docs.icustomer.ai/iharness/autonomy-levels.md?ask=&goal= ``` `ask` is the immediate question: it should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. `goal` is what the user is ultimately trying to achieve, the reason they need the answer. Sharing it helps GitBook give you a better, more relevant answer. A goal is most helpful when it describes the outcome the user wants rather than restating the question. For example, with `ask=how do I create an API token`, a goal like `automate deployments from our CI pipeline` lets GitBook tailor the answer to that use case. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.