shipitagent

Tools · Planning and checking

give_up

Read-only

Declare that you cannot complete the task, with a specific reason. Use only when genuinely blocked, not when the work is merely hard.

When to use: Call `give_up` when you genuinely cannot complete the task — a required file, credential, permission, or piece of information is missing and no tool you have can obtain it. Give a specific reason: what you needed, what you tried, and what would unblock you. "I couldn't do it" is not a reason. Do NOT call this because a task is large or tedious. Do NOT call it before you have actually tried. It is for being blocked, not for being reluctant.

Example

Run for real by scripts/tool-examples.py in a small demo project, with Haiku 5.5 where the tool calls a model. The output is exactly what the tool returned.

The call

tool call
{
  "tool": "give_up",
  "arguments": {
    "reason": "The billing API returns 401 for every call.",
    "needs": "A valid STRIPE_API_KEY."
  }
}

Real output

Blocked: The billing API returns 401 for every call.

Would unblock this:
- A
- v
- a
- l
- i
- d
- S
- T
- R
- I
- P
- E
- _
- A
- P
- I
- _
- K
- E
- Y
- .

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
reason*stringWhat you needed, what you tried, and what would unblock you.
needsarraySpecific things that would unblock you — a file path, a credential, a decision from the user.

* required

Plan the work, weigh options, and check results before answering.