How to handle incomplete responses from Cohere in n8n?

When Cohere returns an incomplete response in n8n (for example the text gets cut off or the API stops mid‑sentence), the most reliable production approach is to detect the incomplete output inside a Function node, then re‑call Cohere with the original prompt plus a continuation request, looping until the response meets your completeness criteria. In other words: check the output, and if it’s incomplete, retry or continue — don’t trust the first answer blindly.

 

Why this works

 

Cohere (like any LLM) may stop early because of length limits, safety filters, or model quirks. n8n won’t automatically fix this for you. Production workflows usually add a small logic layer to validate the output and control retries. You do this using:

• A Function node to inspect the text and decide if it looks incomplete.
• A Switch node or If node to branch into a retry/continue path.
• An HTTP Request node (or the Cohere node) to regenerate or extend the text.
• A Looping pattern (typical n8n setup using a Merge node in “Wait for Both” mode) so you can re‑query until you're satisfied.

 

How to detect incomplete responses

 

There is no perfect automatic rule, but in real production systems we use simple and robust checks:

• Ends abruptly (no punctuation, chopped sentence)
• Shorter than expected (for example less than 50 characters when you expect a paragraph)
• Known incomplete markers (e.g., ends with a comma or conjunction like “and”)

You can implement this in a Function node easily.

 

// n8n Function node
const text = $json.data;   // Adjust based on actual Cohere response structure

function isIncomplete(str) {
  if (!str) return true;
  
  // Very simple heuristic: too short OR ends with a partial sentence
  const tooShort = str.length < 50;
  const abruptEnding = !/[.!?]$/.test(str.trim());

  return tooShort || abruptEnding;
}

return [{
  text,
  incomplete: isIncomplete(text)
}];

 

Branching logic in n8n

 

Right after the Function node, add an If node:

• If incomplete = true → go to a node that calls Cohere again (same prompt + “continue from: …”).
• If false → go to your normal processing path.

This keeps the workflow clean and predictable.

 

How to retry or continue the answer

 

In the retry path you call Cohere again using the same prompt, but you add the previous partial answer as context. Something like:

{
  "model": "command",
  "prompt": "Continue the previous answer:\n\n" + {{$json.text}},
  "max_tokens": 200
}

(Exact format depends on the Cohere endpoint you're using. The key idea: you tell the model to continue.)

 

Looping until complete

 

The cleanest production pattern is:

• A Merge node (Wait for Both) to loop back.
• The loop repeats: Cohere → Function(check) → If → (retry or exit).

This keeps execution stateful and prevents accidental endless loops. Always add a safeguard — for example, keep a counter in the items and stop after 3 retries.

 

// In a Function node early in the loop
const count = $json.retryCount || 0;

if (count >= 3) {
  return [{
    ...$json,
    stoppedDueToRetries: true
  }];
}

return [{
  ...$json,
  retryCount: count + 1
}];

 

Error handling for production safety

 

• Enable the workflow’s error workflow so you get alerts if Cohere is down.
• Use node-level retries (in the HTTP Request node) with backoff delays.
• Log the raw Cohere response before processing in case debugging is needed.

 

Summary

 

The practical way to handle incomplete responses from Cohere in n8n is to explicitly check the response text using a Function node, then branch into retry/continue logic when needed. This gives you predictable, production‑safe behavior. n8n will not fix incomplete LLM responses for you — you implement a simple control loop that ensures the text is complete before the workflow continues.