# Email Triage — wakeAgent Gate Pattern

A condition-based poller that checks for new actionable email, fires the LLM only when there's unprocessed high-priority mail, and stays silent (zero cost) on empty ticks.

## Design

```
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│  cron: every 15m                                            │
│  no_agent=true                                              │
│  script: check-unread-email.sh                              │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│  Script output (stdout):                                    │
│   • "" (empty)         → no agent, no delivery ── $0.00     │
│   • "3 unread priority" → gate opens → agent processes      │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
```

## Implementation

### 1. Script (`scripts/check-unread-email.sh`)

```bash
#!/usr/bin/env bash
# Silent poller: outputs nothing unless there are actionable unread emails
# Called by cron with no_agent=true — zero token cost on empty ticks
#
# Gate logic:
#   stdout empty = no new email → silent delivery (nothing sent)
#   stdout non-empty = has mail → cron passes it to agent context

source ~/.hermes/profiles/leonard/.env

COUNT=$(himalaya envelope list -f INBOX -a 2>/dev/null | grep -c "UNSEEN" || echo 0)

if [ "$COUNT" -eq 0 ]; then
  exit 0  # silent — no output, no delivery
fi

# Gate opened: output structured context for the agent to process
echo "UNREAD_EMAIL=$COUNT"
echo "TIMESTAMP=$(date -Iseconds)"
echo "---"
himalaya envelope list -f INBOX -a 2>/dev/null | head -20
```

### 2. Cron Job (Hermes cron)

```bash
hermes cron create \
  -s "email-monitor" \
  --schedule "every 15m" \
  --script ~/.hermes/profiles/leonard/scripts/check-unread-email.sh \
  --no-agent \
  "If the script reports unread emails, summarize the top 3 most important ones with sender, subject, and a one-line action recommendation. Flag anything urgent or time-sensitive. If nothing actionable, deliver nothing."
```

### 3. Wake Gate Principle

The gate stays **closed** (no agent invoked) 95%+ of ticks. The script:
- Uses no LLM resources (pure shell)
- Outputs nothing on empty scans → **silent delivery** (free)
- Only when email is found does the agent context fire

## Key Configuration

| Setting | Value | Reason |
|---------|-------|--------|
| `schedule` | `every 15m` | Fast enough for triage, sparse enough to stay cheap |
| `no_agent` | `true` | Script-only polling — zero token cost per tick |
| `deliver` | `origin` | Returns to the same chat where created |
| Script exit | `0` with empty stdout | Silent — no notification sent |

## Variants

- **Compliance monitor**: Same pattern, replace email check with regulatory RSS/API poll
- **Opportunity scanner**: Script scrapes X/HN, gates on fresh high-signal mentions
- **System health**: Script checks disk/GPU/memory thresholds, gates only on warnings
- **Skills curator**: Script checks skill freshness, gates on skills approaching staleness