A handoff artifact is the actual document a handoff produces. The handoff is the act of passing work on; the artifact is the note that carries it: a short, written record of the state of play that the next session or agent reads first.
What a good one contains
It is not a transcript. It is a distilled summary aimed at getting a fresh agent productive in one read:
- Goal: what we are trying to build and why.
- Done: what works and is confirmed.
- Next: the immediate next steps, in order.
- Decisions: the choices already made, so they are not relitigated.
- Pointers: paths and links to the primary source files that matter.
Why write it down
Because a fresh session starts with an empty context. The artifact is the seed you plant to fill it with the right stuff, fast. It functions much like a mini spec: written context that tells the agent what to do next and why, without making it reverse-engineer the whole history.
Related terms
Handoff
A handoff is passing work from one session or agent to the next by summarising the current state, so the successor can continue without relearning everything. It is the antidote to a dead or overflowing window.
Read definition →Spec
A spec is a written description of what to build and why, handed to the agent up front. Specs-as-context reliably beat vague one-line requests.
Read definition →Primary source
A primary source is the authoritative original: the actual code, the real types, the official docs. Point agents at primary sources so they read reality instead of guessing from memory.
Read definition →