What it means
The product pauses at defined checkpoints for human judgment (approve send, merge PR, publish article, charge card), even if AI drafted the action.
Why designers should care
HITL patterns need clear diffs, one-click approve/reject, audit logs, and SLA-aware queues, especially for agents that chain multiple steps.
Example
An email agent drafts replies in “Pending review”; support leads batch-approve five messages with inline edits before anything reaches customers.
Common mistakes
- Approval UI that hides what changed from the AI’s last version.
- Human review added only after an incident, with no metrics on queue depth.
- Training users to rubber-stamp because diffs are unreadable.
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Frequently asked questions
What is Human in the loop?
Human-in-the-loop (HITL) means a person reviews, approves, or corrects AI output before it affects users, records, or systems.
Why should designers care about Human in the loop?
HITL patterns need clear diffs, one-click approve/reject, audit logs, and SLA-aware queues, especially for agents that chain multiple steps.
What are common mistakes with Human in the loop?
Approval UI that hides what changed from the AI’s last version; Human review added only after an incident, with no metrics on queue depth; Training users to rubber-stamp because diffs are unreadable.