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AIDE (Agent-Informed Development Engineering) -- A Software Development Methodology for the Agentic Era v1.0

Author: CTO (20+ years of architecture experience, 3 years of hands-on AI agent experience) Based on: GPT/Claude/Gemini triple deep research + Team Alpha (Integrationists) 2 reports + Team Beta (Radicals) 1 report Date: 2026-02-18

Part 6: AIDE Adoption Guide

When to Adopt AIDE (Decision Matrix)

Project Characteristics Adoption Level Core Principles
Projects where AI agents are the primary code producers Full Adoption All 10 principles
AI-assisted development + mid-size projects Core Adoption Principles 1 (Context Budget), 2 (Locality), 5 (Test), 7 (Guardrails), 10 (Meta-Code)
Simple Q&A chatbot / LLM-based projects Partial Adoption Principles 7 (Guardrails), 8 (Observability), 9 (Security)
Traditional software (no AI usage) Not Needed Maintain existing methodologies

New Projects vs. Existing Project Migration

New Projects: Clean Start

New projects start with AIDE principles from the beginning:

  1. Define manifest.yaml (technology stack, code standards, testing tools)
  2. Write CLAUDE.md + AGENTS.md (within 300 lines)
  3. Set up Feature-based directory structure
  4. Include Eval + Security Gate in CI/CD pipeline
  5. Develop the first Feature in types -> logic -> test -> handler order

Existing Projects: Progressive Migration

Existing projects transition progressively on a Feature-by-Feature basis:

  1. Phase 1 (Immediately): Add CLAUDE.md + manifest.yaml, strengthen linting/type checking in CI
  2. Phase 2 (1-2 weeks): Begin developing new Features with AIDE structure (features/ directory)
  3. Phase 3 (Progressive): When modifying existing code, refactor that portion to Feature-based structure
  4. Phase 4 (Quarterly): Build Eval datasets, add Security Gate
  5. Phase 5 (Ongoing): Minimize shared/ code, simplify layer structure

Key: "Do not rewrite existing code all at once." By applying AIDE principles only to new and modified code, the transition happens naturally over time.

Checklists

AIDE Minimum Requirements Checklist

  • [ ] Meta files: CLAUDE.md/AGENTS.md exist at root and are within 300 lines
  • [ ] manifest.yaml: Technology stack, code standards, and test configuration are locked down
  • [ ] Feature-based structure: Independent directories per feature exist
  • [ ] Type safety: TypeScript strict mode or equivalent type checking enabled
  • [ ] Deterministic guardrails: Linter + type checker + pre-commit hook configured
  • [ ] Observability: Structured log format, tracing enabled
  • [ ] Security verification: Security linter configured, automated execution in CI
  • [ ] Testing: Unit + PBT minimum, Eval Suite recommended
  • [ ] CI gates: Automatic eval execution on meta file/code changes

AIDE Full Compliance Checklist (above items + the following)

  • [ ] Eval Flywheel: Production failures automatically incorporated into eval datasets
  • [ ] Security Gate: AI-generated code security scan + SCA automated execution
  • [ ] Cost Tracking: Real-time monitoring of token usage, API response times
  • [ ] Skill packages: Reusable skills defined in .agents/skills/
  • [ ] Duplication detection: Automated detection of business-knowledge-level duplication in CI
  • [ ] Human Review PR Contract: Intent explanation, proof of operation, risk rating, AI usage disclosure

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