On-device AI agents slow down due to unmonitored thermal throttling, engineers warn

On-device AI agents can experience performance degradation during real-world use due to thermal throttling, a problem often missed during testing. Continuous inference generates heat, causing Android's thermal system to reduce CPU and GPU frequency on many devices. Developers can monitor thermal headroom using PowerManager.getThermalHeadroom() to proactively throttle their agents before system throttling occurs. Implementing proactive throttling by switching to lighter models or reducing inference frequency creates a more graceful performance decline than sudden latency spikes. Testing should be conducted on older mid-range devices over sustained periods to identify affected hardware, as emulators and flagship phones may not exhibit the issue.