# Remove work from a hot path that only some requests need

Work every request pays for that only some requests need, moved behind the condition that needs it.

Category: Performance and cost
Source: https://letsship.ai/use-cases/remove-work-from-a-hot-path
Published: 2026-08-25

## Goal

Move work that only some requests need off a hot path.

## Acceptance criteria

- A benchmark shows the improvement
- Behaviour tests are unchanged and still pass
- The moved work still runs for the requests that need it
- The condition deciding it is explicit and tested

## What lands as proof

A benchmark before and after, with an unchanged behaviour suite proving nothing was lost.

## Prompt

Copy this to an agent to open the ticket:

```text
Create a Linear issue in my team and assign it to the SHIP agent.

Title: Move optional work off the {path} hot path

Description: Move work that only some requests need off a hot path.

Acceptance criteria:
- A benchmark shows the improvement
- Behaviour tests are unchanged and still pass
- The moved work still runs for the requests that need it
- The condition deciding it is explicit and tested

Before you create the issue, profile a hot path in this repository and replace {path} with it. Name the work that is not always needed.
```

## Questions

### What does the agent actually change?

The ticket is scoped to one outcome: move work that only some requests need off a hot path. Work that serves that outcome is in scope, and anything outside it is left for a separate ticket, so the pull request stays reviewable.

### How do I know the work is done?

The pull request carries the evidence, not only the diff. Here that means benchmark before and after, behaviour tests unchanged, so a reviewer can confirm the result without reproducing the work locally.

### How much oversight does this need?

The run stops once the plan is written. Somebody reads the approach and approves it before any code exists, which is the cheapest moment to redirect the work.