aidlc-workflows
AI-Driven Life Cycle (AI-DLC) adaptive workflow steering rules for AI coding agents
AI-DLC Workflows is a Claude Code plugin and multi-agent steering framework that implements adaptive, three-phase software development workflows for AI coding assistants. Developed by AWS Labs, it guides AI agents through Inception (requirements and design), Construction (implementation and testing), and Operations (deployment) phases with intelligent stage selection based on project complexity. The plugin works by placing workflow rules in agent-specific configuration files (CLAUDE.md for Claude Code, .cursor/rules for Cursor, .clinerules for Cline, etc.) that the AI reads as project context. Developers maintain control through structured approval gates at each stage while the framework ensures quality standards, risk assessment, and extensible compliance rules.
Key Features
Use Cases
- 01Guiding AI coding assistants through structured end-to-end feature development with requirements analysis and design validation
- 02Ensuring AI-generated code meets organizational security, testing, and resiliency standards through opt-in extension rules
- 03Managing complex refactoring projects with comprehensive planning, unit-of-work decomposition, and risk assessment
- 04Maintaining quality control over AI-assisted development by enforcing approval gates at Inception and Construction milestones
- 05Adapting workflow rigor to task complexity—lightweight for bug fixes, comprehensive for new microservices or architectural changes
- 06Standardizing AI agent behavior across development teams with shared project-level workflow rules
Related Plugins
View moreandrej-karpathy-skills
A single CLAUDE.md file to improve Claude Code behavior, derived from Andrej Karpathy's observations on LLM coding pitfalls.
claude-mem
Persistent Context Across Sessions for Every Agent – Captures everything your agent does during sessions, compresses it with AI, and injects relevant context back into future sessions. Works with Claude Code, OpenClaw, Codex, Gemini, Hermes, Copilot, OpenCode + More
Understand-Anything
Graphs that teach > graphs that impress. Turn any code into an interactive knowledge graph you can explore, search, and ask questions about. Works with Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Copilot, Gemini CLI, and more.
rtk
CLI proxy that reduces LLM token consumption by 60-90% on common dev commands. Single Rust binary, zero dependencies
aidlc-workflows — FAQ
What is AI-DLC Workflows and what does it do?+
AI-DLC Workflows is an adaptive steering framework that guides AI coding agents through structured software development phases (Inception, Construction, Operations). It ensures AI assistants follow quality standards, risk assessment, and approval gates while automatically adapting workflow depth to match project complexity.
How do I install AI-DLC Workflows for Claude Code?+
Download the latest release zip from the GitHub releases page, extract it outside your project, then copy core-workflow.md to CLAUDE.md in your project root and copy aws-aidlc-rule-details/ to .aidlc-rule-details/. Start development by typing 'Using AI-DLC, ...' in your chat to activate the workflow.
Which AI coding agents support AI-DLC Workflows?+
AI-DLC works with Claude Code, Cursor IDE, Cline, Amazon Q Developer, GitHub Copilot, Kiro, and OpenAI Codex. Each agent uses its native rules mechanism (CLAUDE.md, .cursor/rules, .clinerules, etc.) to load the workflow instructions.
Do I need API keys or special prerequisites?+
No additional API keys are required beyond those for your chosen AI coding agent. You only need to download the release zip and copy the workflow files into your project following the platform-specific setup instructions for your agent.
Is AI-DLC Workflows free to use?+
Yes, AI-DLC Workflows 2.0 is open source and free under the MIT-0 license. You only pay for the underlying AI model usage costs from your chosen coding agent (Claude, GPT, etc.).
How do I enable optional security or testing extensions?+
During the Requirements Analysis stage, AI-DLC presents structured opt-in questions for each available extension (security baseline, property-based testing, resiliency rules). Answer 'yes' to activate the extension, which then becomes a blocking constraint enforced at every subsequent stage.
How do I install aidlc-workflows?+
Open the source repository on GitHub and follow its README. aidlc-workflows is a plugin — MCP Agents Market links you directly to the official repo.
Is aidlc-workflows free?+
aidlc-workflows is an open-source project hosted on GitHub. Check the repository for its license and any usage requirements.