What integration contract should we establish before loading a pilot release?

Before loading a pilot release, agree a small adapter contract between the supplied material and your agent runtime. Include `schema_version`, identifier types, timestamp conventions, enumerated statuses and the meaning of absent values. Distinguish an unknown value from a field that does not apply.

Specify tool behaviour as well as record shape. A search response should define pagination, stable ordering and how partial results are signalled. A fetch action should distinguish an unknown identifier from an access denial. These differences affect whether the agent retries, requests access or reports missing evidence.

Request a compatibility fixture containing valid records and deliberately invalid inputs. Use it to verify the loader and adapter before evaluating agent reasoning. A rejected record should produce an actionable validation message rather than disappear silently.

Pin the pilot to an agreed schema and environment version. If either changes, retain a migration note describing affected fields and behaviours. This gives developers a concrete basis for separating integration defects from evidence-assembly failures and deciding which earlier results remain comparable.