---
title: "Discussion on \"Your AI Agent's Exit Code Is Lying to You\" | Hashnode"
description: "Discussion on \"Your AI Agent's Exit Code Is Lying to You\". An agent that exits 0 is not an agent that did the thing. It just means whatever it ran didn't blow up. Here's the cheap verification gate I stopped skipping."
url: "https://hashnode.com/posts/ai-agent-exit-code-lies-prove-it-ran/6ad71522516d90bb571c245e"
---

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# [Your AI Agent's Exit Code Is Lying to You](https://blogs.powerduck.com/ai-agent-exit-code-lies-prove-it-ran?utm_source=hashnode&utm_medium=feed)

An agent that exits 0 is not an agent that did the thing. It just means whatever it ran didn't blow up. Here's the cheap verification gate I stopped skipping.

Oct 20 · 4 min read · blogs.powerduck.com  
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## Written by

[Powerduck](https://hashnode.com/@powerduck)

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## Responses 1

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[Abhinav Sharma](https://hashnode.com/@abhinavs1920)

[Oct 20](https://hashnode.com/posts/ai-agent-exit-code-lies-prove-it-ran/6ad71522516d90bb571c245e/comment/6ad72e477e15d3e6a0262cd1)

"Running on vibes" is the right name for it. A migration that exits 0 after processing zero rows is the classic trap, and green tests against the wrong fixture are close behind. Asking for the before/after count in the PR is a cheap gate that catches both.
