Add a rate-limit backstop to your agent's email sending

Short summary

A practical engineering guide to adding rate-limit backstops for AI email agents using the Nylas API. It explains why agents need client-side throttling (token bucket + queue + retry loop) to avoid hitting daily send quotas and per-second rate limits. The article details Nylas Agent Account quotas, including the 200-sends-per-day Free plan cap and the shared budget between emails and calendar invitations.

• •AI agents need client-side throttling because they will call send tools hundreds of times without pausing
• •Nylas Agent Accounts enforce a 200 sends/day Free plan quota shared between emails and calendar invites
• •A token bucket handles the per-second speed limit while a queue manages the daily budget, with retry for rare 429s

Generated with AI, which can make mistakes.