Learning to Rewrite Tool Descriptions for Reliable LLM-Agent Tool Use
A Curriculum Learning Framework for LLM-Agent Tool Interface Optimization
The performance of LLM-based agents depends not only on the agent itself but also on the quality of the tool interfaces it consumes. While prior work has focused heavily on agent fine-tuning, tool interfaces—including natural language descriptions and parameter schemas—remain largely human-oriented and often become a bottleneck, especially when agents must select from large candidate tool sets. Existing approaches to improving tool interfaces rely on execution traces, which are frequently unavailable in cold-start or privacy-constrained settings, and typically optimize each tool independently, limiting scalability and generalization to unseen tools. We propose Trace-Free+, a curriculum learning framework that progressively transfers supervision from trace-rich settings to trace-free deployment, encouraging the model to abstract reusable interface-usage patterns and tool usage outcomes. To support this approach, we construct a large-scale dataset of high-quality tool interfaces using a structured workflow over a diverse collection of tools. Experiments on StableToolBench and RestBench show consistent gains on unseen tools, strong cross-domain generalization, and robustness as the number of candidate tools scales to over 100, demonstrating that tool interface optimization is a practical and deployable complement to agent fine-tuning.
Unlocking Enhanced AI Agent Performance
Our Trace-Free+ framework significantly boosts the reliability and generalization of LLM-agent tool use, addressing critical limitations in cold-start and privacy-constrained environments. By refining tool descriptions, we enable agents to interact more effectively with a diverse range of APIs, leading to superior outcomes across various tasks and domains.
Deep Analysis & Enterprise Applications
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Problem Statement
The performance of LLM-based agents is bottlenecked by the quality of tool interfaces, especially with large, evolving tool sets. Existing methods rely on execution traces, which are often unavailable, limiting scalability and generalization. We aim to improve tool descriptions to enhance tool selection and execution accuracy in both trace-based and trace-free settings.
Methodology
We propose Trace-Free+, a curriculum learning framework that transfers supervision from trace-rich to trace-free settings. We synthesize a large dataset of high-quality tool descriptions and repaired parameter schemas using an agentic workflow. Fine-tuned LLMs then generate improved descriptions. The process includes agentic tool annotation, query synthesis, and a two-stage description improvement pipeline (data-independent D1, trace-aware D2).
Enterprise Process Flow
Experimental Results
Experiments on StableToolBench and RestBench demonstrate significant gains. In trace-free settings, Trace-Free+ outperforms baselines like D1 and EasyTool, particularly for multi-hop queries. It shows strong cross-domain generalization (TMDB, Spotify) and robustness against increasing numbers of candidate tools. For trace-based settings, it also shows improvement in F1 score and API execution success rate.
Conclusion
Trace-Free+ effectively improves tool descriptions for unseen tools, leading to better tool selection and parameter generation. The approach is robust to scaling candidate tools and addresses limitations of existing trace-dependent methods, opening avenues for future research in joint agent-interface optimization.
Estimate Your AI Agent Efficiency Gains
Quantify the potential time and cost savings your enterprise can achieve with optimized LLM-agent tool interfaces.
Our Proven Implementation Roadmap
A phased approach to integrate Trace-Free+ into your enterprise AI operations.
Discovery & Customization
Assess existing tool interfaces, define integration points, and customize Trace-Free+ for your specific enterprise environment.
Data Synthesis & Training
Construct a high-quality dataset from your APIs and fine-tune the description generators using our curriculum learning framework.
Deployment & Monitoring
Deploy the enhanced tool descriptions, integrate with LLM agents, and continuously monitor performance for iterative improvements.
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Transform your LLM-agent capabilities with robust, reliable tool interfaces. Our experts are ready to guide your enterprise through the implementation of Trace-Free+.