aidlc-kit

AI-DLC project scaffolding engine with plugin-based solution profiles.

aidlc-kit is the companion CLI tool for the AI-DLC methodology, originally introduced by Raja SP in the AWS DevOps Blog and further expanded with open-source adaptive workflows. The methodology is extended with additional rituals, enterprise guardrails, brownfield workflows, and tooling in Reimagine, Don't Retrofit by Ricardo González Vargas. The book provides the methodology, principles, and rituals; this tool provides the project scaffolding to put them into practice.

Install

pip install aidlc-kit
# or with uv
uv tool install aidlc-kit
# or run without installing
uvx aidlc-kit

Installing aidlc-kit also installs the default software profile, which provides the software development workflow (Mob Elaboration, Mob Construction, Code Elevation).

Quick Start

# Scaffold a new project (interactive wizard)
aidlc-kit init my-project

# Non-interactive
aidlc-kit init my-project --mode greenfield --platform aws --ide kiro

# Brownfield (existing codebase)
cd existing-repo
aidlc-kit init . --mode brownfield --platform azure --ide copilot

Solution Profiles

aidlc-kit is a workflow engine. The actual templates, prompts, and ritual definitions live in profile packages. Each profile targets a different workflow.

# List installed profiles
aidlc-kit profiles list

# Use a specific profile
aidlc-kit init my-project --profile software   # default

Profiles are discovered via Python entry points (aidlc_kit.profiles group). Install any profile package and it appears automatically in profiles list. Profiles can also declare CLI commands that are registered dynamically at startup.

Engine Commands

Profiles can declare additional commands via the cli_commands contract field. The software profile adds consistency, validate-plan, extensions, intent, and bolt. See each profile's README for its commands.

What the Engine Does

The engine provides profile-agnostic scaffolding mechanics:

• Copies templates from the active profile's templates_path into aidlc-docs/
• Applies platform overlays (aws/, azure/, gcp/, etc.) on top of base templates
• Renders conditional blocks ({{#tierName}}...{{/tierName}}) based on the active tier
• Replaces placeholders ({{PROJECT_NAME}}, {{PLATFORM}}, {{KIT_VERSION}})
• Generates IDE router configs and Agent Skills for 24 supported IDEs
• Generates MCP server configs from profile declarations
• Detects template drift, tier upgrades, and project health via check
• Protects user-owned files (state, intents, decisions) during update

What gets scaffolded depends entirely on the installed profile.

IDE Support

Generate router configs for your IDE with --ide. Use --ide all for every supported IDE.

Profile Contract

Profiles declare their capabilities via a Python dict. The engine uses these fields to drive scaffolding, validation, and CLI behavior:

Profile extensions use extends to add capabilities to a base profile (e.g., tiers_add, skills_add, cli_commands_add).

License

Business Source License 1.1 — see LICENSE for details.

Free to use for scaffolding and managing your AI-DLC projects. You may not offer this tool, or a derivative, as a competing product or hosted service. Converts to Apache 2.0 on 2030-02-27.