Files
PaperClipAI/server
DottaandClaude Opus 5.5 7d9973405c fix(chat): ask for a missing name only when the request and saved brief give none (#21007)
## Thinking Path

> - Paperclip is the open source app people use to manage AI agents for
work
> - People talk to their agents in chat, and the chat guidance tells the
agent how Paperclip works
> - #20888 added a rule: ask for a missing name before building
something that must carry it
> - In a chat eval, "Start a Launch project and have Morgan build its
landing page" made the agent create the project and then ask for the
brand name. It did not create Morgan's task
> - The person had named the project, so a question was not necessary
> - This pull request narrows the rule: ask only when the request, the
conversation and the work's saved brief give no name
> - The benefit is one necessary question when a name is truly missing,
and no extra question when the person already named the work

## Linked Issues or Issue Description

Refs #20888

**What happened**

For "Start a Launch project and have Morgan build its landing page", the
agent created the Launch project and asked for the brand name. It did
not create the landing-page task for Morgan.

**Expected behavior**

The agent uses the name the person gave (Launch), creates the project
and the task for Morgan, and returns both links. For "Build a landing
page for my new product." with no name anywhere, the agent still asks
one free-text question for the product name.

**Steps to reproduce**

1. Run the chat eval `tasks.website-without-project` on master.
2. Read the reply: the agent asks for a brand name and creates no task.

## What Changed

- Chat guidance (`AGENT_CHAT_DIRECTIVE`): use the name that the request,
the conversation or the work's saved brief gives. A project the person
names in the request counts. Ask only when none of these gives a name.
Do not take the name from unrelated records such as other existing
projects or the company name. The rule against invented or placeholder
names stays.
- Tests: updated and new text checks in `agent-conversations.test.ts`.

## Verification

- `cd server && npx vitest run
src/__tests__/agent-conversations.test.ts`: 64 passed. The new test
fails on master (red) and passes with this change (green).
- `npx vitest run` for `board-access-denial` and `codex-local-execute`:
passed.
- Paid chat evals `tasks.website-without-project` and
`questions-and-approvals.necessary-question` run on a combined throwaway
branch; results are in a PR comment. The necessary-question fixture has
an unrelated existing "Launch" project, so the guidance says not to take
the name from other projects.

## Risks

- Guidance text only. The model can still ask or not ask in edge cases.
The paid evals check both directions.

## Model Used

- Anthropic Claude Opus 5.5 (`claude-opus-5-5`), tool use and code
execution in Claude Code.

## Checklist

- [x] I have included a thinking path that traces from project context
to this change
- [x] I have specified the model used (with version and capability
details)
- [x] I have checked ROADMAP.md and confirmed this PR does not duplicate
planned core work
- [x] I have searched GitHub for duplicate or related PRs and linked
them above
- [x] I have either (a) linked existing issues with `Fixes: #` / `Closes
#` / `Refs #` OR (b) described the issue in-PR following the relevant
issue template
- [x] I have not referenced internal/instance-local Paperclip issues or
links (only public GitHub `#NNN` / `github.com/paperclipai/paperclip`
URLs)
- [x] My branch name describes the change (e.g. `docs/...`, `fix/...`)
and contains no internal Paperclip ticket id or instance-derived details
- [x] I have run tests locally and they pass
- [x] I have added or updated tests where applicable
- [x] I have updated relevant documentation to reflect my changes
- [x] I have considered and documented any risks above
- [ ] All Paperclip CI gates are green
- [ ] Greptile is 5/5 with no open P2s, recommendations, or follow-ups
- [x] I will address all Greptile and reviewer comments before
requesting merge

🤖 Generated with [Claude Code](https://claude.com/claude-code)

---------

Co-authored-by: Claude Opus 5.5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-11-11 21:00:33 -06:00
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