Agentic Quality Engineering
<default_to_action> When implementing agentic QE or coordinating agents:
- SPAWN appropriate agent(s) for the task using
Tasktool with agent type - CONFIGURE agent coordination (hierarchical/mesh/sequential)
- EXECUTE with PACT principles: Proactive analysis, Autonomous operation, Collaborative feedback, Targeted risk focus
- VALIDATE results through quality gates before deployment
- LEARN from outcomes - store patterns in
aqe/learning/*namespace
Quick Agent Selection:
- Test generation needed →
qe-test-generator - Coverage gaps →
qe-coverage-analyzer - Quality decision →
qe-quality-gate - Security scan →
qe-security-scanner - Performance test →
qe-performance-tester - Full pipeline →
qe-fleet-commander
Critical Success Factors:
- Agents amplify human expertise, not replace it
- Human-in-the-loop for critical decisions
- Measure: bugs caught, time saved, coverage improved </default_to_action>
Quick Reference Card
When to Use
- Designing autonomous testing systems
- Scaling QE with intelligent agents
- Implementing multi-agent coordination
- Building CI/CD quality pipelines
PACT Principles
| Principle | Agent Behavior | Human Role | |-----------|---------------|------------| | Proactive | Analyze pre-merge, predict risk | Set guardrails | | Autonomous | Execute tests, fix flaky tests | Review critical | | Collaborative | Multi-agent coordination | Provide context | | Targeted | Risk-based prioritization | Define risk areas |
19-Agent Fleet
| Category | Agents | Primary Use | |----------|--------|-------------| | Core Testing (5) | test-generator, test-executor, coverage-analyzer, quality-gate, quality-analyzer | Daily testing | | Performance/Security (2) | performance-tester, security-scanner | Non-functional | | Strategic (3) | requirements-validator, production-intelligence, fleet-commander | Planning | | Advanced (4) | regression-risk-analyzer, test-data-architect, api-contract-validator, flaky-test-hunter | Specialized | | Visual/Chaos (2) | visual-tester, chaos-engineer | Edge cases | | Deployment (1) | deployment-readiness | Release | | Analysis (1) | code-complexity | Maintainability |
Coordination Patterns
Hierarchical: fleet-commander → [generators] → [executors] → quality-gate
Mesh: test-gen ↔ coverage ↔ quality (peer decisions)
Sequential: risk-analyzer → test-gen → executor → coverage → gate
Success Criteria
✅ 10x deployment frequency with same/better quality ✅ Coverage gaps detected in real-time ✅ Bugs caught pre-production ❌ Agents acting without human oversight on critical decisions ❌ Deploying all 19 agents at once (start with 1-2)
Core Concepts
QE Evolution
| Stage | Approach | Limitation | |-------|----------|------------| | Traditional | Manual everything | Human bottleneck | | Automation | Scripts + fixed scenarios | Needs orchestration | | Agentic | AI agents + human judgment | Requires trust-building |
Core Premise: Agents amplify human expertise for 10x scale.
Key Capabilities
1. Intelligent Test Generation
// Agent analyzes code change, generates targeted tests
const tests = await qeTestGenerator.generate(prDiff);
// → Happy path, edge cases, error handling tests
2. Pattern Detection - Scan logs, find anomalies, correlate errors
3. Adaptive Strategy - Adjust test focus based on risk signals
4. Root Cause Analysis - Link failures to code changes, suggest fixes
Agent Coordination
Memory Namespaces
aqe/test-plan/* - Test planning decisions
aqe/coverage/* - Coverage analysis results
aqe/quality/* - Quality metrics and gates
aqe/learning/* - Patterns and Q-values
aqe/coordination/* - Cross-agent state
Memory Operations (MCP Tools)
CRITICAL: Always use aqe memory store with persist: true for learnings.
1. Store data to persistent memory:
# Store test plan decisions (persisted to .agentic-qe/memory.db)
aqe memory store \
--key "aqe/test-plan/pr-123" \
--namespace "aqe/test-plan" \
--value '{"prNumber":123,"riskLevel":"medium","requiredCoverage":85,"testTypes":["unit","integration"]}' \
--ttl 604800 \
--json
2. Retrieve prior learnings before task:
# Query patterns before starting test generation
aqe memory search \
--pattern "aqe/learning/patterns/test-generation/*" \
--namespace "aqe/learning" \
--json
3. Store coverage analysis results:
aqe memory store \
--key "aqe/coverage/auth-module" \
--namespace "aqe/coverage" \
--value '{"moduleId":"auth-module","currentCoverage":78,"gaps":["error-handling","edge-cases"],"priority":"high"}' \
--ttl 1209600 \
--json
Three-Phase Memory Protocol
For coordinated multi-agent tasks, use the STATUS → PROGRESS → COMPLETE pattern:
# PHASE 1: STATUS - Task starting
aqe memory store \
--key "aqe/coordination/task-123/status" \
--namespace "aqe/coordination" \
--value '{"status":"running","agent":"qe-test-generator"}' \
--json
# PHASE 2: PROGRESS - Intermediate updates
aqe memory store \
--key "aqe/coordination/task-123/progress" \
--namespace "aqe/coordination" \
--value '{"progress":50,"action":"generating-unit-tests","testsGenerated":25}' \
--json
# PHASE 3: COMPLETE - Task finished
aqe memory store \
--key "aqe/coordination/task-123/complete" \
--namespace "aqe/coordination" \
--value '{"status":"complete","result":"success","testsGenerated":47,"coverageAchieved":92.3}' \
--json
Blackboard Events
| Event | Trigger | Subscribers |
|-------|---------|-------------|
| test:generated | New tests created | executor, coverage |
| coverage:gap | Gap detected | test-generator |
| quality:decision | Gate evaluated | fleet-commander |
| security:finding | Vulnerability found | quality-gate |
Example: PR Quality Pipeline
// 1. Risk analysis
const risks = await Task("Analyze PR", prDiff, "qe-regression-risk-analyzer");
// 2. Generate tests for risks
const tests = await Task("Generate tests", risks, "qe-test-generator");
// 3. Execute + analyze
const results = await Task("Run tests", tests, "qe-test-executor");
const coverage = await Task("Check coverage", results, "qe-coverage-analyzer");
// 4. Quality decision
const decision = await Task("Evaluate", {results, coverage}, "qe-quality-gate");
// → GO/NO-GO with rationale
Implementation Phases
| Phase | Duration | Goal | Agent(s) | |-------|----------|------|----------| | Experiment | Weeks 1-4 | Validate one use case | 1 agent | | Integrate | Months 2-3 | CI/CD pipeline | 3-4 agents | | Scale | Months 4-6 | Multiple use cases | 8+ agents | | Evolve | Ongoing | Continuous learning | Full fleet |
Phase 1 Example
# Week 1: Deploy single agent
aqe agent spawn qe-test-generator
# Weeks 2-3: Generate tests for 10 PRs
# Track: bugs found, test quality, review time
# Week 4: Measure impact
aqe agent metrics qe-test-generator
# → Tests: 150, Bugs: 12, Time saved: 8h
Limitations & Strengths
Agents Excel At
- Volume: Scan thousands of logs in seconds
- Patterns: Find correlations humans miss
- Tireless: 24/7 testing and monitoring
- Speed: Instant code change analysis
Agents Need Humans For
- Business context and priorities
- Ethical judgment and trade-offs
- Creative exploration ("what if" scenarios)
- Domain expertise (healthcare, finance, legal)
Best Practices
| Do | Don't | |----|-------| | Start with one agent, one use case | Deploy all 18 at once | | Build feedback loops early | Deploy and forget | | Human reviews agent output | Auto-merge without review | | Measure bugs caught, time saved | Track vanity metrics (test count) | | Build trust gradually | Give full autonomy immediately |
Trust Progression
Month 1: Agent suggests → Human decides
Month 2: Agent acts → Human reviews after
Month 3: Agent autonomous on low-risk
Month 4: Agent handles critical with oversight
Agent Coordination Hints
coordination:
topology: hierarchical
commander: qe-fleet-commander
memory_namespace: aqe/coordination
blackboard_topic: qe-fleet
preload_skills:
- agentic-quality-engineering # Always (this skill)
- risk-based-testing # For prioritization
- quality-metrics # For measurement
agent_assignments:
qe-test-generator: [api-testing-patterns, tdd-london-chicago]
qe-coverage-analyzer: [quality-metrics, risk-based-testing]
qe-security-scanner: [security-testing, risk-based-testing]
qe-performance-tester: [performance-testing]
Related Skills
holistic-testing-pact- PACT principles deep diverisk-based-testing- Prioritize agent focusquality-metrics- Measure agent effectivenessapi-testing-patterns,security-testing,performance-testing- Specialized testing
Resources
- Agent definitions:
.claude/agents/ - CLI:
aqe agent --help - Fleet status:
aqe fleet status
Success Metric: Deploy 10x more frequently with same or better quality through intelligent agent collaboration.