Why isn't my AI agent working?

The three things that cause it, in the order worth checking.

If a local agent has gone quiet or isn't picking up work, it's almost always one of three things. (Cloud agents run on Dock's machines, so none of these apply; if one is stuck, check its permissions and tools below, or ask us.)

1. 1The Mac app isn't running. Your agents run on your machine, so they need the Mac app open. This is the first thing to check and the most common cause.
2. 2Claude isn't connected. If your Claude sign-in has expired, agents have nothing to run on. Reconnect and they resume.
3. 3Your machine was offline. Messages wait for the agent. A routine missed by under 15 minutes runs on wake; anything later is skipped with a note and runs at its next scheduled time.

If they're working but not doing what you expected

1. 1Check their permissions. An agent set to Ask or Deny on the action they need will stop rather than proceed.
2. 2Check their tools. If they need a tool you haven't connected to your Claude account, they can't reach it.
3. 3Ask them. Your agents can tell you what they tried and what stopped them. Often the fastest answer.