diff --git a/scripts/templates/optimization/README.md b/scripts/templates/optimization/README.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..84f815d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/templates/optimization/README.md
@@ -0,0 +1,88 @@
+# Pipeline Optimization and Self-Healing
+
+Two tools for making agent pipelines more efficient and resilient over time.
+
+## pipeline-optimizer.sh
+
+Analyzes FEEDBACK.md and cost-events.jsonl to identify:
+
+| Issue | Detection | Recommendation |
+|-------|-----------|----------------|
+| Bottleneck agent | Top-2 by cost event count, 1.5x+ avg | Batch tool calls or narrow task scope |
+| Unnecessary revision loops | 3+ `loop-excess` pattern rows | Tighten acceptance criteria, add max-iterations guard |
+| Underutilized agent | Appears in < 10% of pipeline runs | Remove from pipeline or combine with another agent |
+| Cost outlier | Single run >= 3x average | Add per-run budget cap via budget-hook.sh |
+
+Output is written to `RECOMMENDATIONS.md` with a VFM pre-score for each
+recommendation. Higher VFM pre-scores mean more value per implementation effort.
+
+**This script does not auto-implement anything.** All changes require
+manual review and explicit approval. This is intentional — pipeline
+restructuring is a high-stakes operation.
+
+## self-healing.sh
+
+Categorizes errors and applies targeted recovery strategies:
+
+| Error Type | Recovery | Max Retries |
+|------------|----------|-------------|
+| `timeout` | Retry with shorter scope | 5 (hard cap) |
+| `permission-denied` | Log and skip | 0 (no retry) |
+| `tool-not-found` | Alert operator | 0 (no retry) |
+| `api-error` | Exponential backoff (2^n seconds) | 3 |
+| `content-quality` | Retry with stricter prompt | 2 |
+
+**Hard cap: 5 total attempts regardless of category.** This follows the
+OpenClaw pattern — unbounded retry loops are the most common cause of
+runaway agent costs. The cap is non-negotiable.
+
+After the hard cap is reached, the script exits with code 2 (escalate).
+The caller is responsible for deciding whether to pause, alert a human,
+or abort the pipeline run.
+
+## Connection to feedback and VFM
+
+```
+feedback-collector.sh -> FEEDBACK.md -> performance-scorer.sh -> flagged agents
+                                     |
+                              pipeline-optimizer.sh -> RECOMMENDATIONS.md
+                                     |
+                           (manual review + approval)
+                                     |
+                            prompt/pipeline update
+                                     |
+                           new runs -> new feedback
+```
+
+VFM pre-scores in RECOMMENDATIONS.md use the same 0–100 scale as
+`scripts/templates/proactive/VFM-SCORING.md` (Step 11). They are
+pre-scores, not final scores — the VFM evaluation still needs to run
+when the task is scheduled. The pre-scores help prioritize which
+recommendations to tackle first.
+
+## Safety limits
+
+- `pipeline-optimizer.sh`: read-only analysis — never modifies pipeline files
+- `self-healing.sh`: max 5 attempts hard cap, permission errors never retried
+- All events logged to `healing-log.jsonl` for audit trail
+- No auto-escalation to external systems — exit codes only
+
+## Usage
+
+```bash
+# Run optimizer for all pipelines
+./optimization/pipeline-optimizer.sh
+
+# Run optimizer for a specific pipeline
+./optimization/pipeline-optimizer.sh --pipeline doc-pipeline
+
+# Handle an error in a pipeline step
+./optimization/self-healing.sh \
+  --error-type api-error \
+  --agent agent-writer \
+  --attempt 1 \
+  --context "OpenAI timeout on summarize call"
+
+# Check healing log
+cat healing-log.jsonl | python3 -m json.tool
+```
diff --git a/scripts/templates/optimization/pipeline-optimizer.sh b/scripts/templates/optimization/pipeline-optimizer.sh
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b5c09b8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/templates/optimization/pipeline-optimizer.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,221 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+# Pipeline optimizer: identify bottlenecks, excess loops, cost outliers.
+# Bash 3.2 compatible. Uses python3 for all analysis.
+# Does NOT auto-implement any changes -- produces RECOMMENDATIONS.md only.
+#
+# Analysis covers:
+#   - Bottleneck agents (highest avg duration or cost per run)
+#   - Unnecessary revision loops (agents that loop 3+ times on average)
+#   - Underutilized agents (invoked < 10% of pipeline runs)
+#   - Cost outliers (single run cost >= 3x average)
+#
+# Output: RECOMMENDATIONS.md with VFM pre-scores for each recommendation.
+#
+# Usage:
+#   ./pipeline-optimizer.sh
+#   ./pipeline-optimizer.sh --pipeline {{PIPELINE_NAME}}
+#
+# Placeholders:
+#   {{WORKING_DIR}} - absolute path to project directory
+
+WORKING_DIR="{{WORKING_DIR}}"
+FEEDBACK_FILE="$WORKING_DIR/FEEDBACK.md"
+COST_LOG="$WORKING_DIR/budget/cost-events.jsonl"
+RECOMMENDATIONS_FILE="$WORKING_DIR/RECOMMENDATIONS.md"
+PIPELINE_FILTER=""
+
+# Parse arguments (bash 3.2 compatible)
+while [ "$#" -gt 0 ]; do
+  case "$1" in
+    --pipeline) PIPELINE_FILTER="$2"; shift 2 ;;
+    *) shift ;;
+  esac
+done
+
+python3 << PYEOF
+import re, json, os, sys
+from collections import defaultdict
+from datetime import datetime
+
+feedback_file = "$FEEDBACK_FILE"
+cost_log = "$COST_LOG"
+recommendations_file = "$RECOMMENDATIONS_FILE"
+pipeline_filter = "$PIPELINE_FILTER"
+
+# Parse FEEDBACK.md
+feedback_rows = []
+if os.path.exists(feedback_file):
+    with open(feedback_file) as f:
+        in_table = False
+        for line in f:
+            line = line.strip()
+            if '| Date |' in line:
+                in_table = True
+                continue
+            if in_table and line.startswith('|---'):
+                continue
+            if in_table and line.startswith('|') and '{{' not in line:
+                cols = [c.strip() for c in line.strip('|').split('|')]
+                if len(cols) >= 7:
+                    try:
+                        score_m = re.match(r'(\d+)', cols[3])
+                        score = int(score_m.group(1)) if score_m else 0
+                        feedback_rows.append({
+                            'date': cols[0],
+                            'pipeline': cols[1],
+                            'agent': cols[2],
+                            'score': score,
+                            'issue': cols[4],
+                            'pattern': cols[6]
+                        })
+                    except (ValueError, IndexError):
+                        pass
+
+# Filter by pipeline
+if pipeline_filter:
+    feedback_rows = [r for r in feedback_rows if r['pipeline'] == pipeline_filter]
+
+# Parse cost events
+cost_events = []
+if os.path.exists(cost_log):
+    with open(cost_log) as f:
+        for line in f:
+            line = line.strip()
+            if line:
+                try:
+                    cost_events.append(json.loads(line))
+                except Exception:
+                    pass
+
+# Per-agent event counts (cost proxy)
+cost_by_agent = defaultdict(list)
+# Group by agent+date for per-run cost
+run_costs = defaultdict(list)
+for e in cost_events:
+    agent = e.get('agent', 'unknown')
+    date = e.get('timestamp', '')[:10]
+    run_key = f"{agent}:{date}"
+    cost_by_agent[agent].append(1)
+    run_costs[agent].append(1)
+
+# Build recommendations
+recommendations = []
+
+# 1. Bottleneck agents: top 2 by event count
+if cost_by_agent:
+    agent_totals = [(a, len(events)) for a, events in cost_by_agent.items()]
+    agent_totals.sort(key=lambda x: -x[1])
+    for agent, total in agent_totals[:2]:
+        all_costs = [len(v) for v in run_costs.values()]
+        avg_cost = sum(all_costs) / len(all_costs) if all_costs else 1
+        if total > avg_cost * 1.5:
+            recommendations.append({
+                'type': 'bottleneck',
+                'agent': agent,
+                'description': f"Agent '{agent}' accounts for {total} events vs avg {avg_cost:.0f}. "
+                               f"Consider batching its tool calls or reducing its task scope.",
+                'vfm_prescore': 70
+            })
+
+# 2. Unnecessary revision loops: agents with loop-excess pattern >= 3 times
+pattern_by_agent = defaultdict(lambda: defaultdict(int))
+for r in feedback_rows:
+    if r['pattern']:
+        pattern_by_agent[r['agent']][r['pattern']] += 1
+
+for agent, patterns in pattern_by_agent.items():
+    if patterns.get('loop-excess', 0) >= 3:
+        count = patterns['loop-excess']
+        recommendations.append({
+            'type': 'loop-excess',
+            'agent': agent,
+            'description': f"Agent '{agent}' has {count} feedback rows tagged 'loop-excess'. "
+                           f"Review pipeline revision criteria -- tighten acceptance conditions "
+                           f"or add a max-iterations guard (see self-healing.sh).",
+            'vfm_prescore': 80
+        })
+
+# 3. Underutilized agents: invoked in < 10% of pipeline runs
+if feedback_rows:
+    all_runs = set(r['date'] + ':' + r['pipeline'] for r in feedback_rows)
+    total_runs = len(all_runs) if all_runs else 1
+    agent_runs = defaultdict(set)
+    for r in feedback_rows:
+        agent_runs[r['agent']].add(r['date'] + ':' + r['pipeline'])
+    for agent, runs in agent_runs.items():
+        utilization = len(runs) / total_runs
+        if utilization < 0.1 and total_runs >= 10:
+            recommendations.append({
+                'type': 'underutilized',
+                'agent': agent,
+                'description': f"Agent '{agent}' appears in only {utilization*100:.0f}% of pipeline runs. "
+                               f"Consider removing from the pipeline or combining with another agent.",
+                'vfm_prescore': 60
+            })
+
+# 4. Cost outliers: single-run cost >= 3x average
+if run_costs:
+    all_run_totals = []
+    for agent, runs in run_costs.items():
+        all_run_totals.extend(runs)
+    avg_run = sum(all_run_totals) / len(all_run_totals) if all_run_totals else 1
+    for agent, runs in run_costs.items():
+        for run_cost in runs:
+            if run_cost >= avg_run * 3:
+                recommendations.append({
+                    'type': 'cost-outlier',
+                    'agent': agent,
+                    'description': f"Agent '{agent}' had a run costing {run_cost} events "
+                                   f"vs avg {avg_run:.1f} (3x+ threshold). "
+                                   f"Add per-run budget cap with budget-hook.sh.",
+                    'vfm_prescore': 75
+                })
+                break  # one recommendation per agent
+
+# Write RECOMMENDATIONS.md
+timestamp = datetime.utcnow().strftime('%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ')
+pipeline_label = pipeline_filter if pipeline_filter else "all pipelines"
+
+lines = [
+    f"# Pipeline Optimization Recommendations",
+    f"",
+    f"Generated: {timestamp}",
+    f"Scope: {pipeline_label}",
+    f"",
+    f"> These are recommendations only. No changes have been made.",
+    f"> Review each item and implement manually or with team approval.",
+    f"",
+]
+
+if recommendations:
+    lines.append(f"## Recommendations ({len(recommendations)} found)")
+    lines.append("")
+    for i, rec in enumerate(recommendations, 1):
+        lines.append(f"### R{i}: {rec['type'].upper()} -- {rec['agent']}")
+        lines.append("")
+        lines.append(rec['description'])
+        lines.append("")
+        lines.append(f"**VFM pre-score:** {rec['vfm_prescore']}/100")
+        lines.append("")
+else:
+    lines.append("## No recommendations")
+    lines.append("")
+    lines.append("No bottlenecks, excess loops, underutilized agents, or cost outliers detected.")
+    lines.append("")
+
+lines.append("## Next steps")
+lines.append("")
+lines.append("1. Review each recommendation with the team")
+lines.append("2. Prioritize by VFM pre-score (higher = more value per effort)")
+lines.append("3. Implement approved changes one at a time")
+lines.append("4. Run feedback-collector.sh for 10+ runs after each change")
+lines.append("5. Re-run pipeline-optimizer.sh to confirm improvement")
+
+with open(recommendations_file, 'w') as f:
+    f.write('\n'.join(lines) + '\n')
+
+print(f"Recommendations written to {recommendations_file}")
+print(f"  Found: {len(recommendations)} recommendations")
+for rec in recommendations:
+    print(f"  - [{rec['type']}] {rec['agent']}: VFM pre-score {rec['vfm_prescore']}")
+PYEOF
diff --git a/scripts/templates/optimization/self-healing.sh b/scripts/templates/optimization/self-healing.sh
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2f31b8a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/templates/optimization/self-healing.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,147 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+# Self-healing: categorize errors and apply recovery strategies.
+# Bash 3.2 compatible. Uses python3 for JSON/log parsing.
+#
+# Error categories and recovery strategies:
+#   timeout          -> retry with shorter task scope
+#   permission-denied -> log and skip (do not retry)
+#   tool-not-found   -> log and alert, do not retry
+#   api-error        -> exponential backoff, max 3 retries
+#   content-quality  -> re-run with stricter prompt, max 2 retries
+#
+# Max total attempts: 5 (OpenClaw pattern -- hard cap regardless of category).
+# All recovery events logged to healing-log.jsonl.
+#
+# Usage:
+#   ./self-healing.sh --error-type <type> --agent <name> --attempt <n> --context <msg>
+#
+# Exit codes:
+#   0 -- recovery action taken (caller should retry)
+#   1 -- no recovery possible (caller should abort)
+#   2 -- max attempts reached (caller should escalate)
+#
+# Placeholders:
+#   {{WORKING_DIR}} - absolute path to project directory
+
+WORKING_DIR="{{WORKING_DIR}}"
+HEALING_LOG="$WORKING_DIR/healing-log.jsonl"
+MAX_ATTEMPTS=5
+
+ERROR_TYPE=""
+AGENT_NAME=""
+ATTEMPT=1
+CONTEXT_MSG=""
+
+# Parse arguments (bash 3.2 compatible)
+while [ "$#" -gt 0 ]; do
+  case "$1" in
+    --error-type) ERROR_TYPE="$2"; shift 2 ;;
+    --agent) AGENT_NAME="$2"; shift 2 ;;
+    --attempt) ATTEMPT="$2"; shift 2 ;;
+    --context) CONTEXT_MSG="$2"; shift 2 ;;
+    *) shift ;;
+  esac
+done
+
+if [ -z "$ERROR_TYPE" ]; then
+  echo "Usage: $0 --error-type <type> --agent <name> --attempt <n> --context <msg>"
+  exit 1
+fi
+
+# Hard cap: max 5 attempts total
+if [ "$ATTEMPT" -gt "$MAX_ATTEMPTS" ]; then
+  echo "MAX ATTEMPTS REACHED ($MAX_ATTEMPTS) for $AGENT_NAME. Escalating."
+  python3 -c "
+import json, time, os
+event = {
+    'timestamp': time.strftime('%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ', time.gmtime()),
+    'agent': '$AGENT_NAME',
+    'error_type': '$ERROR_TYPE',
+    'attempt': $ATTEMPT,
+    'action': 'escalate',
+    'reason': 'max_attempts_reached',
+    'context': '$CONTEXT_MSG'
+}
+with open('$HEALING_LOG', 'a') as f:
+    f.write(json.dumps(event) + '\n')
+print(json.dumps(event))
+"
+  exit 2
+fi
+
+# Determine recovery action per category
+RECOVERY_ACTION=""
+RECOVERY_DETAIL=""
+EXIT_CODE=0
+
+case "$ERROR_TYPE" in
+  timeout)
+    RECOVERY_ACTION="retry_shorter"
+    RECOVERY_DETAIL="Re-run with reduced task scope. Split task if attempt >= 3."
+    if [ "$ATTEMPT" -ge 3 ]; then
+      RECOVERY_DETAIL="Attempt $ATTEMPT: recommend splitting task before retry."
+    fi
+    EXIT_CODE=0
+    ;;
+  permission-denied)
+    RECOVERY_ACTION="skip"
+    RECOVERY_DETAIL="Permission errors cannot be auto-resolved. Log and skip. Notify operator."
+    EXIT_CODE=1
+    ;;
+  tool-not-found)
+    RECOVERY_ACTION="alert"
+    RECOVERY_DETAIL="Tool not found -- check agent config and hook registrations. Do not retry."
+    EXIT_CODE=1
+    ;;
+  api-error)
+    # Exponential backoff: 2^(attempt-1) seconds, max 3 retries
+    if [ "$ATTEMPT" -le 3 ]; then
+      BACKOFF_SECS=$(python3 -c "print(min(2 ** ($ATTEMPT - 1), 16))")
+      RECOVERY_ACTION="retry_backoff"
+      RECOVERY_DETAIL="API error -- wait ${BACKOFF_SECS}s then retry (attempt $ATTEMPT/3)."
+      sleep "$BACKOFF_SECS"
+      EXIT_CODE=0
+    else
+      RECOVERY_ACTION="abort"
+      RECOVERY_DETAIL="API error persists after 3 retries. Aborting."
+      EXIT_CODE=1
+    fi
+    ;;
+  content-quality)
+    # Max 2 retries for quality issues
+    if [ "$ATTEMPT" -le 2 ]; then
+      RECOVERY_ACTION="retry_strict"
+      RECOVERY_DETAIL="Re-run with stricter prompt. Add explicit quality criteria (attempt $ATTEMPT/2)."
+      EXIT_CODE=0
+    else
+      RECOVERY_ACTION="escalate_quality"
+      RECOVERY_DETAIL="Content quality below threshold after 2 retries. Escalate to human review."
+      EXIT_CODE=2
+    fi
+    ;;
+  *)
+    RECOVERY_ACTION="unknown"
+    RECOVERY_DETAIL="Unknown error type '$ERROR_TYPE'. Logging and aborting."
+    EXIT_CODE=1
+    ;;
+esac
+
+# Log recovery event
+python3 -c "
+import json, time
+event = {
+    'timestamp': time.strftime('%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ', time.gmtime()),
+    'agent': '$AGENT_NAME',
+    'error_type': '$ERROR_TYPE',
+    'attempt': $ATTEMPT,
+    'action': '$RECOVERY_ACTION',
+    'detail': '$RECOVERY_DETAIL',
+    'context': '$CONTEXT_MSG'
+}
+with open('$HEALING_LOG', 'a') as f:
+    f.write(json.dumps(event) + '\n')
+print(json.dumps(event, indent=2))
+"
+
+echo "Recovery: $RECOVERY_ACTION -- $RECOVERY_DETAIL"
+exit $EXIT_CODE