Unpredictable under load

Systems that become unpredictable under load usually have a hidden scaling problem rather than a model problem. As traffic rises, timing shifts, dependencies slow down, and the behavior becomes less stable than it looked in smaller tests.

This is especially noticeable in AI because multiple steps can compound under pressure. Retrieval, generation, retries, and downstream calls all amplify one another when the system is busy.

Predictability improves when the team stress-tests the system before users do. Load is not just a performance issue; it is a reliability issue too.