Handoff
A handoff transfers control from one agent or stage to another. In a conversational system, it can change which specialist is responsible for handling the next interaction.
[LangChain]In practice · hypothetical example
A triage assistant transfers a billing conversation to a billing specialist that handles the next customer turn.
[LangChain]A little deeper
Handoff designs differ in which history and state they transfer. Passing control is distinct from asking a worker for a result while the original agent remains in charge. [LangChain]
A common mix-up
Every tool call is a handoff.
A tool can return a result without taking over the conversation. [LangChain]
A specialist takes responsibility for the next customer turn. Which pattern fits?
Sources & editorial notes
Evidence: supported. Primary-source support for this scoped entry; publication approved by the project owner.
- Handoffs ↗ (opens in new tab)LangChain · Publication date unknown
Relevant section: How it works
Last editorial review: 2026-09-13 by project-owner.
First observed in this corpus: Unknown.
Revision history
Revision 2 · Created 2026-09-13 · Updated 2026-09-13
Project owner approved the current content for publication. Existing evidence scope and limitations remain applicable.