AI engineering glossary · Agents tools MCP
What is retry with backoff?
Retry with backoff: Repeating a failed call after waiting, with the wait growing each time, for example 1, 2, then 4 seconds. It handles temporary failures such as rate limits without overloading the service, and is usually capped at a maximum number of attempts.
Retry with backoff: an example
After a 429 rate-limit response, a tool wrapper waits 1 s, then 2 s, then 4 s, and gives up after five tries.
Related terms
More Agents tools MCP terms
- Router pattern
- Sandbox
- Scope (OAuth)
- Scratchpad memory
- Self-critique
- Semantic memory
- Shared state
- Short-term memory
Where you learn it
Retry with backoff is part of the AI Engineering Program, which teaches it with notes, a hands-on lab and an exam. The first lesson is free.