{
  "slug": "delegation-chain-depth",
  "title": "Can an AI agent delegate to another agent? Only with a human at the root and a bounded depth.",
  "summary": "By hop three, nobody can tell which human authorised the agent that authorised the agent. Bearer tokens cannot answer it. Monotonic delegation chains can.",
  "lede": "In a multi agent system, authority is usually passed along by handing over a token. A token says what it permits, and nothing about who authorised the chain, how far it may travel, or how to stop it. Here is the alternative: a signed chain that narrows at every hop and verifies back to one human, offline.",
  "date": "2026-09-05",
  "reading_time": "20 min read",
  "category": "Agents",
  "tags": [
    "agent delegation",
    "multi-agent",
    "A2A",
    "authority",
    "OAuth",
    "macaroons",
    "agent security"
  ],
  "image": "https://cdn.twc.sh/images/igcache/Delegation%20Chain%20Depth/1200_630/blog.jpg",
  "url": "/blog/delegation-chain-depth.html",
  "wordcount": 4183,
  "related": [
    "delegation-tokens-explained",
    "prove-agent-authorized",
    "agent-deleted-production"
  ],
  "schema": "Article"
}