Start Here
Your guided path to understanding and implementing AI-DLC, the software development profile of the H•AI•K•U Method.
The Short Version
AI can now reason autonomously for hours, iterate in seconds, and write production code at scale. Traditional development methods weren't designed for this. AI-DLC is.
It's a methodology built from first principles for AI-driven development. You define what you want to build and how you'll know it's done. AI handles the rest — planning, building, reviewing — iterating until your criteria are met.
The entire workflow is two commands:
Define what you're building. The AI guides you through requirements, success criteria, and (for complex work) how to decompose it into units. This creates your intent — the what and the definition of done.
Start building. The AI creates a branch, plans the approach, writes the code, reviews its work, and iterates until all your criteria are satisfied. You can watch, intervene, or let it run.
What It Looks Like
If a session runs long, the AI will suggest clearing context. Your progress is saved — just run /execute again to pick up where you left off.
How It Works
Under the hood, /elaborate captures your intent — what you want to build, with specific completion criteria. Complex intents get broken into units — focused pieces of work that can each be completed in one session.
When you run /execute, the AI cycles through three hats:
Planner
Designs the approach — steps, dependencies, edge cases.
Builder
Executes the plan — writes code, implements features, creates tests.
Reviewer
Validates quality — tests pass, criteria met, code is production-ready.
Specialized workflows add hats for security testing, design, TDD, and debugging.
Quality is enforced through backpressure, not prescription. Instead of telling AI how to build, you define constraints — tests must pass, types must check, linting must be clean. AI iterates until all gates clear.
Install It
AI-DLC is a Claude Code plugin. Two commands to install:
/plugin marketplace add thebushidocollective/ai-dlc/plugin install ai-dlc@thebushidocollective-ai-dlc --scope projectAlternative: Download Plugin
Download the plugin zip, extract it into your project, and point Claude Code to it:
Need Han CLI for state management? See the full installation guide.
Go Deeper
That's enough to start. When you're ready to go further:
- Core Concepts — Intents, units, operating modes, and state management
- The Hat System — All hats including specialized workflows
- Feature Example — End-to-end walkthrough of building a feature
- The Paper — Full methodology with research and production lessons
- Big Picture Diagram — Interactive overview of how everything connects