Inspirational Vision Background
The Ideas-to-Life Philosophy

Structured Output via Schema

Define a formal schema for agent outputs and validate LLM responses against it to keep results machine-readable and reliable.

Confidence: high Pattern ID: structured-output-via-schema exploring
Agentic AI Architecture #agentic-ai #contract #structured-output #schema #pydantic #validation February 15, 2026
Diagram for Structured Output via Schema

Intent

Ensure LLM responses are machine-readable and conform to a specific format.

Context

Used when generating insights and plans that must be parsed, stored, or integrated with UI/DB flows. This applies where type safety and consistent structure at the LLM boundary reduces downstream errors.

Agentic profile • System shape: unknown • Orchestration mode: unknown

Agent-to-agent interaction • Present: unknown • Mechanism: unknown • Evidence: unknown

Tool protocols • MCP: unknown • Tool calling: unknown • Evidence: unknown

Optimisation target • Primary: unknown • Secondary: unknown • Notes: unknown

Simplicity vs autonomy • Position: unknown • Rationale: unknown

Forces • Integration with UI/DB • Type safety

Solution • Define expected outputs as Pydantic models. • Pass the schema to the LLM client to constrain generation. • Validate the resulting LLM output against the schema before using or storing it.

Implementation signals • Pydantic models in models.py • Usage of schema argument in llm_client.generate

Evidence • src/agents/insights/agent.py#InsightsAgent.run — Uses InsightsOutput schema • src/llm/structured.py#validate_structured_output — Validation logic

Consequences

Benefits • Reliable parsing • Type checking • Clear interface

Costs • Prompt overhead • LLM may struggle with complex schemas

Failure modes • Validation errors if LLM deviates

Reuse notes • Define Pydantic models for all agent outputs. • Keep schemas as simple as possible to reduce validation failures.

Confidence

High — the agent and validation logic are directly evidenced via schema usage and a dedicated validation function.

Sources & References

  • Formalising the Pattern Publication System