Cursor rule

1---
2description: "SAFe x AI-DLC fusion for running programs: in programs that adopt it, Bolts take the place of sprints and Units of Work of Features, plus Mob Elaboration and the human-in-the-loop validation gate. Opt-in per program. Activate when planning or running multi-issue programs."
3alwaysApply: false
4---
5 
6# SAFe x AI-DLC (Program Cadence)
7 
8Use this rule when work spans **multiple issues and needs cadence** — turning an audit, epic, or
9initiative into an executable program. For a single isolated ticket, use `.cursor/rules/01-git-workflow.mdc` instead.
10 
11SAFe supplies the hierarchy and guardrails. AI-DLC supplies the cadence and the human checkpoint.
12Inside a program that adopts this fusion, the **sprint gives way to the Bolt** — an hours-to-days
13swarm — because agent teams elaborate, build, and verify far faster than a week-long sprint assumes.
14Adopting the fusion is a per-program choice; the standard sprint path stays valid.
15 
16## Vocabulary
17 
18- **Bolt** — the unit of cadence. A short swarm (hours to a few days) with an entry gate, a handful
19  of issues, and a hard exit. Numbered `bolt:0`, `bolt:1`, and so on.
20- **Unit of Work** — one coherent outcome; a project in the tracker. Mapped to the SAFe Feature here, though AWS frames it as replacing the Epic.
21- **Mob Elaboration** — the Inception activity: read the issue, break it into sub-issues, list
22  unknowns, and ask clarifying questions **before writing any code**.
23- **Mob Construction** — the Construction activity: implement against the elaborated plan.
24- **The three phases** — Inception, Construction, Operations.
25- **The loop** — AI plans → AI asks → **human validates business context** → AI executes.
26 
27## The Fusion Mapping
28 
29| SAFe              | AI-DLC                                | Linear                              |
30| ----------------- | ------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------- |
31| Portfolio Epic    | The Program                           | Initiative                          |
32| Epic/value stream | Program stream                        | Sub-initiative, or project priority |
33| Feature           | Unit of Work                          | Project                             |
34| PI increment      | Bolt                                  | `bolt:N` label + target date        |
35| Phase gate        | Inception / Construction / Operations | Project Milestone (3 per project)   |
36| Story/Enabler     | Story                                 | Issue                               |
37| Task              | Mob task                              | Sub-issue                           |
38| WSJF/Role/DoD     | prioritization / mob role / gate      | description + `agent:*` + AC/DoD    |
39 
40## Dependency-Wiring Rules
41 
42Wire `blocks` / `blockedBy` so the enforcement lands **before** the thing it enforces:
43 
44- **Fix the gate before the fix it verifies**
45- **Rotate before scrub** (credentials)
46- **Capture before alert** (observability)
47- **Upgrades before re-baseline** (supply chain)
48 
49Chains are usually rooted at CI hardening. Find that keystone and sequence its Bolt first.
50 
51## Running a Bolt
52 
531. Open and elaborate every issue (Mob Elaboration)
542. **Validate with the human** before Construction begins
553. Construct in dependency order, rebase-first
564. Verify the gates are **real** — a green check that masks a failure is not an exit
575. Post evidence to the tracker
586. RTE prepares the PR; the human (HITL) merges
59 
60## Human-Gate Checklist
61 
62Never guess these — surface options with a recommendation and stop:
63 
64- Secret or credential actions
65- Security policy (CSP allow-list, auth behavior, headers)
66- CI or branch-protection decisions
67- Severity or risk policy, fix-vs-suppress budget
68- SOP exceptions
69- Signing the Definition of Done
70 
71## Anti-Patterns
72 
73- Forcing an ambiguous epic into one Bolt — run a **spike** instead
74- Creating sub-issues before Inception
75- Treating a Bolt as a calendar sprint (it exits on evidence, not a date)
76- Skipping human validation to move faster
77 
78## References
79 
80- `docs/guides/SAFE-AI-DLC-METHODOLOGY.md` -- Methodology guide (rationale, worked example)
81- `specs_templates/program_template.md` -- Program document scaffolding
82- AI-DLC source: <https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/devops/ai-driven-development-life-cycle/>
83