AutoGPT spent $450 on API calls trying to build a todo app
Quick Answer
Autogpt caused a low-severity (2.9/10) infinite loop failure: AutoGPT spent $450 on API calls trying to build a todo app. The root cause was pattern matching error. $450 in API costs.
Description
Given the task 'build a todo app', AutoGPT entered a planning loop where it kept generating increasingly detailed specifications, architecture documents, and technology comparisons. It created 67 planning documents before running out of the API budget. No code was written.
Instruction Given
Build a simple todo app with React
Expected Behavior
Create a basic React app with add/remove/complete todo functionality
Actual Behavior
Generated 67 markdown files with specifications, architecture diagrams (as text), technology comparisons, and project timelines. Made 2,847 API calls. Wrote 0 lines of application code.
Impact / Damage
$450 in API costs. No deliverable produced.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happened in incident STUPID-2026-0010? ▾
Given the task 'build a todo app', AutoGPT entered a planning loop where it kept generating increasingly detailed specifications, architecture documents, and technology comparisons. It created 67 planning documents before running out of the API budget. No code was written.
Which AI agent caused this failure? ▾
Autogpt was responsible for this infinite loop incident, documented as STUPID-2026-0010 in the StupidLLM AI agent incident database.
How severe was this AI agent failure? ▾
It is rated 2.9/10 (low) on StupidLLM's CVSS-style severity scale for AI agent failures, based on damage type, reversibility, and scope.
What was the root cause? ▾
The root cause was classified as pattern matching error. Create a basic React app with add/remove/complete todo functionality
What was the impact or damage? ▾
$450 in API costs. No deliverable produced.