Interruption Handling
Users interrupt. They change their minds mid-sentence. They correct themselves. Your agent must handle these interruptions smoothly.
Default Behavior
OutputAgentNode handles interruptions automatically. When a user speaks while the agent is talking:
- Audio playback stops immediately
- The current response generation is cancelled
- The system processes the new user input
- The agent responds to the interruption
Disabling Interruptions
For critical information that users must hear completely, disable interruption handling:
When to Use is_interruptible=False
Default to is_interruptible=True for natural conversation. Only disable for critical moments where incomplete information could cause problems.
Custom Interrupt Handling
Override _handle_interrupt() for custom behavior:
Detecting Interrupt Events
Listen for interrupt events at the session level:
State During Interruption
Track what was happening when the interruption occurred:
Resuming After Interruption
Sometimes you want to resume the previous topic:
Tools and Interruptions
Tool calls in progress when an interruption occurs are typically allowed to complete:
Tips
Keep responses short
Shorter responses have less to interrupt. Aim for 2-3 sentences max.
Checkpoint multi-part explanations
Track where you are so users can say “continue” to resume after interrupting.
Acknowledge before pivoting
When interrupted, briefly acknowledge before switching topics: “Sure, what did you need?”

