Executive Summary: Self-Calling Iteration Framework in xml-pipeline

Date: December 29, 2025
Component: Core reasoning mechanism for LLM personalities

Principle

In xml-pipeline, multi-step reasoning, planning, tool use, and iteration are implemented through open, auditable self-calls — not hidden loops or state machines.

The LLM personality participates in the conversation exactly like any other listener: it can send messages to its own root tag.

How It Works

Conversation thread = memory
Every message (user, personality, tool) is appended to history keyed by convo_id.
Self-reflection = self-message
To think step-by-step, the LLM emits its own root tag with the same convo_id:
```
<ask-grok convo_id="123">
  First, let's outline the steps...
</ask-grok>
```
MessageBus routes it back to the same personality instance.
Personality appends its own message to history and calls the LLM again.
LLM sees full context — including its previous thoughts — and continues.
Iteration emerges naturally from repeated self-calls until final response.

Key Properties

No hidden state — the thread history is the only memory
No special controller — MessageBus and convo_id do all coordination
Fully auditable — every thought, plan, and intermediate step is a logged message
Tool use fits identically — tool calls are messages to other root tags
Termination is natural — LLM decides when to emit final response tag (e.g., <grok-response>)

Structured Planning Support

Personalities are encouraged to use visible structures:

<todo-until condition="all primes under 100 listed">
  <step done="true">List 2</step>
  <step done="true">List 3</step>
  <step done="false">List 5</step>
</todo-until>

This enables:

Self-coordination (LLM reads its own plan)
GUI progress rendering
Explicit termination conditions

Owner Control

iteration-capacity config (high/medium/low/none) tunes how strongly the personality is prompted to iterate
All behavior governed by owner-provided prompts and response templates
No personality can loop indefinitely without owner consent

Result

The framework turns conversation into computation.

Loops, conditionals, and planning become visible message patterns rather than hidden code.

The organism reasons by talking to itself in the open — producing a complete, transparent trace of thought at every step.

This is the core iteration mechanism for all LLM personalities in xml-pipeline.

2.6 KiB Raw Blame History