ENGINEERING RESEARCH Signals: Toward a Self-Improving Agent BY FACTORY RESEARCH - JANUARY 23, 2026 - 6 MINUTE READ - SHARE How we built a closed-loop system for recursive self-improvement—where the agent detects its own failures and implements fixes automatically. TABLE OF CONTENTS 01 THE PROBLEM WITH METRICS 02 HOW SIGNALS WORKS 03 THE PIPELINE 04 CORRELATING WITH SYSTEM BEHAVIOR 05 CLOSING THE LOOP 06 PRIVACY WITHOUT BLINDNESS 07 WHAT WE'VE LEARNED 08 WHAT'S NEXT