Background Agents
What are Background Agents?
Background Agents are autonomous AI assistants that work for you even when you're not using the app. You set them up once, and they run periodically in the background — monitoring, analyzing, and notifying you about things that matter.
Think of them as personal AI employees that check in on tasks at regular intervals, learn from your instructions, and keep you informed through notifications.
How do they work?
Setting up an Agent
- Create an Agent — Give it a name, choose how often it should run (minimum every 15 minutes), and connect it to your AI model (via LM Studio on your PC or a remote GPU).
- Assign Skills — Attach skills that give the agent specific capabilities (e.g., checking DeFi yields, monitoring token prices, searching the web).
- Give it a task — Describe what you want it to do in plain language. The agent will figure out the steps.
What happens when it runs
Every time your agent wakes up, it:
- Connects to your AI model
- Reviews its plan and memory from previous runs
- Executes its task (browsing the web, calling APIs, reading data)
- Notifies you if it finds something important
- Saves what it learned for next time
Key Features
Runs in the Background
Your agent continues working even when BlockVault is closed. It uses Android's WorkManager to survive app restarts and device reboots. You'll see a notification whenever it's actively running.
Remembers Everything
Each agent has its own memory. It remembers what it did, what it found, and what you told it. This prevents it from repeating itself or sending you the same notification twice.
Smart Planning
When you give an agent a complex task, it creates a multi-step plan and works through it over multiple runs. You can see its current plan and progress at any time.
Interactive Questions
If your agent needs clarification, it can ask you questions through notifications. You reply directly from the notification, and the agent continues its work with your answer.
Skills Integration
Agents can use any skill marked for background use. Skills give agents specialized capabilities — from making API calls to analyzing data. Each skill can require its own API keys, which are stored securely on your device.
What can agents do?
| Capability | Description |
|---|---|
| Web Search | Search the internet for current information |
| API Calls | Make HTTP requests to any service (using curl) |
| Notifications | Alert you when something important happens |
| Ask Questions | Request your input when needed |
| Remember | Store and recall information across runs |
| Plan | Break down complex tasks into steps |
| Read Skills | Load specialized instructions on demand |
| Schedule Tasks | Set up recurring activities |
Security & Privacy
- On-device processing — Your agent connects to YOUR AI model (LM Studio on your PC or a remote server you control). No data is sent to third-party AI services.
- Encrypted secrets — API keys and credentials are stored with AES-256 encryption on your device. The AI model never sees the actual values.
- Limited capabilities — Agents can only make web requests (no arbitrary code execution). They cannot access your wallet keys or sign transactions.
- Transparent execution — You can see a full conversation log of everything your agent did in each run.
- You're in control — Pause, resume, or delete any agent at any time.
Battery & Performance
- Agents use Android's battery-optimized scheduling system.
- The minimum interval between runs is 15 minutes.
- You may need to grant a battery optimization exemption for reliable scheduling (the app will guide you through this).
- Each run only lasts as long as needed to complete the task.
Home Screen Widget
You can pin a monitoring widget to your home screen that shows:
- Real-time agent activity logs
- Next scheduled run countdown
- A "Run Now" button for immediate execution
Getting Started
- Go to AI Assistant > Background Agents
- Tap Create Agent
- Choose your AI model and connection
- Set the run interval (e.g., every 30 minutes)
- Attach relevant skills
- Describe your task
- Grant battery optimization permission when prompted
- Your agent is now working for you!
Tips
- Start with a simple, well-defined task and expand from there.
- Check your agent's memory and plan periodically to see what it's learning.
- Use skills with API keys for more powerful automations (price alerts, portfolio tracking, news monitoring).
- If your agent sends too many notifications, refine your task description to be more specific about when to alert you.