New SKUs fail in agents when embeddings and attributes are sparse while demand for coverage is immediate. Use transfer attributes, supplier priors, and conservative abstention until minimum evidence thresholds are met.
Executive snapshot
Solving the Cold-Start Problem for New SKUs
Retail & commerceCold start
The move
Launch velocity demands agent coverage on day one, but embeddings and reviews are empty for new items.
The friction
Models interpolate from neighbors poorly when taxonomy is messy; hallucinated specs are worse than 'unknown.'
The product verdict
Define minimum evidence packs, inherited attributes with confidence decay, and explicit 'new item' UX for agents.
Field note · Strategic dispatch · /dispatch/cold-start-problem-new-skus