Proof of Concept mode

Project mode is separate from project state. State describes the repository (new, pre-ai, or legacy); mode describes how Kaddo should guide the work.

Use poc when the immediate goal is to validate an assumption, not to plan a complete product roadmap.

kaddo init --mode poc
# or, for an existing project
kaddo project mode poc
kaddo add agents
kaddo add skills

Existing projects remain in standard mode when project.mode is absent.

POC route

flowchart LR
  A[Enable Kaddo] --> B[Hypothesis]
  B --> C[Success criteria]
  C --> D[Minimal technical context]
  D --> E[Resources]
  E --> F[Experiment Work Item]
  F --> G[Evidence]
  G --> H[Conclusion]

The canonical artifact is knowledge/delivery/poc.md. It records:

• Problem
• Hypothesis
• Expected Value
• Scenario
• Success Criteria
• Constraints
• Non-goals
• Evidence
• Conclusion: validated, rejected, or inconclusive

POC mode is ready after initialization: define the hypothesis and success criteria in poc.md, then create a spike when the experiment is clear. It does not require the standard Business/Product baseline, a roadmap, or a complete capability map. Add technical context and Project Resources only when the experiment needs them.

Install agents and skills during the initial POC setup. They provide the guided refinement and implementation context without creating a standard Business/Product baseline.

Run kaddo understand, kaddo context, or inspect kaddo://poc through MCP to see the current POC status and the next recommended step.

Graduate or finish

When evidence supports a durable delivery effort, switch back to the standard flow and bootstrap the remaining baseline:

kaddo project mode standard
kaddo bootstrap

When evidence rejects or cannot establish the hypothesis, record the conclusion in poc.md and keep the decision trace without creating unnecessary product planning artifacts.