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Overview

AI-DLC organizes development into three distinct phases, each with specialized agents and clear outputs.

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Phase 1: Inception

Inception Agent

Captures intents, elaborates requirements, and decomposes work into manageable units.

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Purpose

Transform high-level goals into well-defined, implementable work items.

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Activities

1

Intent Capture

Gather the high-level goal: “User authentication system”
2

Requirement Elaboration

AI asks clarifying questions, generates user stories and NFRs
3

System Context

Define boundaries, interfaces, and constraints
4

Unit Decomposition

Break intent into loosely-coupled, independently developable units
5

Bolt Planning

Plan the bolts needed to implement each story

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Key Outputs

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Phase 2: Construction

Construction Agent

Executes bolts through validated stages, producing tested, production-ready code.

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Purpose

Transform specifications into working, tested code through disciplined stages.

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Bolt Stages

Each bolt type progresses through validated stages:
For complex business logic and domain modeling:
Model the business logic using DDD principles:
  • Identify aggregates, entities, value objects
  • Define domain events and commands
  • Establish ubiquitous language
Apply patterns and make architecture decisions:
  • Choose implementation patterns
  • Define interfaces and contracts
  • Plan data structures
Document significant architectural decisions:
  • Context and problem statement
  • Options considered
  • Decision and rationale
  • Consequences
Generate production code:
  • Follow coding standards
  • Apply design patterns
  • Write clean, maintainable code
Verify correctness:
  • Unit tests for domain logic
  • Integration tests for interfaces
  • Acceptance tests for stories

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Human Checkpoints

Human validation happens at each checkpoint. The AI proposes, the human approves or requests changes. This prevents errors from cascading downstream.

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Bolt Types

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Phase 3: Operations

Operations Agent

Deploys, verifies, and monitors the system in production.

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Purpose

Take constructed features to production and ensure they run reliably.

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Activities

1

Build

Compile, bundle, and prepare deployment artifacts
2

Deploy

Deploy to target environment (staging, production)
3

Verify

Run smoke tests, health checks, and validation
4

Monitor

Set up logging, metrics, and alerting

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Key Outputs

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Phase Transitions

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Inception → Construction

When moving from Inception to Construction:
  1. All units are defined with clear boundaries
  2. Stories have acceptance criteria
  3. Bolt plans are approved
  4. Dependencies are mapped

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Construction → Operations

When moving from Construction to Operations:
  1. All bolts are completed and validated
  2. Tests are passing
  3. Code review is complete
  4. Documentation is updated

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Master Agent Role

The Master Agent orchestrates across phases:
  • Routing: Directs to the appropriate agent
  • Context: Maintains awareness of project state
  • Guidance: Helps navigate the methodology
  • Standards: Enforces project conventions