Idea Skill

This skill covers the Ideation stage of the AI-DLC workflow: claiming Ideas, running structured elaboration rounds to clarify requirements, and preparing for Proposal creation.

Overview

Ideas are the starting point of the AI-DLC pipeline. Humans (or Admin agents) create Ideas describing what they need. The PM Agent claims an Idea, runs elaboration to clarify requirements, and then moves on to /proposal to create a Proposal with document and task drafts.

Idea status lifecycle (3 stored states):

open --> elaborating --> elaborated

All post-elaboration progress (planning, building, verifying, done) is derived from the state of linked Proposals and Tasks. No agent should set Idea status directly beyond elaboration -- all transitions are side-effects of claiming, releasing, or completing elaboration.

Tools

Idea Management:

Requirements Elaboration:

Shared tools (checkin, query, comment, search, notifications): see /chorus

Workflow

Step 1: Check In

chorus_checkin()

Review your persona, current assignments, and pending work counts.

Step 2: Find Work

chorus_get_available_ideas({ projectUuid: "<project-uuid>" })

Or check existing assignments:

chorus_get_my_assignments()

Step 3: Claim an Idea

Claiming automatically transitions the Idea to elaborating status:

chorus_claim_idea({ ideaUuid: "<idea-uuid>" })

Step 4: Gather Context

Before elaborating, understand the full picture:

1. Read the idea in detail:

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   chorus_get_idea({ ideaUuid: "<idea-uuid>" })
   

2. Read existing project documents (for context, tech stack, conventions):

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   chorus_get_documents({ projectUuid: "<project-uuid>" })
   chorus_get_document({ documentUuid: "<doc-uuid>" })
   

3. Review past proposals (to understand patterns and standards):

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   chorus_get_proposals({ projectUuid: "<project-uuid>", status: "approved" })
   

4. Check existing tasks (to avoid duplication):

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   chorus_list_tasks({ projectUuid: "<project-uuid>" })
   

5. Read comments on the idea for additional context:

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   chorus_get_comments({ targetType: "idea", targetUuid: "<idea-uuid>" })
   

Step 5: Elaborate on the Idea

Every Idea should go through elaboration. Skip only when requirements are completely unambiguous (e.g., bug fix with clear steps). Elaboration improves Proposal quality and reduces rejection cycles.

Simple Ideas (skip elaboration)

You may skip elaboration, but you MUST ask the user for permission first via AskUserQuestion before calling chorus_pm_skip_elaboration. Never skip on your own judgment alone.

chorus_pm_skip_elaboration({
  ideaUuid: "<idea-uuid>",
  reason: "Bug fix with clear reproduction steps"
})

Standard/Complex Ideas (run elaboration)

1. Determine depth based on idea complexity:

   • "minimal" — 2-4 questions (small features, minor enhancements)
   • "standard" — 5-10 questions (typical new features)
   • "comprehensive" — 10-15 questions (large features, architectural changes)

2. Create elaboration questions:

   Note: Do NOT include an "Other" option in your questions. The UI automatically adds a free-text "Other" option to every question.

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   chorus_pm_start_elaboration({
     ideaUuid: "<idea-uuid>",
     depth: "standard",
     questions: [
       {
         id: "q1",
         text: "What user roles should have access to this feature?",
         category: "functional",
         options: [
           { id: "a", label: "All users" },
           { id: "b", label: "Admin only" },
           { id: "c", label: "Role-based (configurable)" }
         ]
       }
     ]
   })
   

3. Present questions to the user — MUST use AskUserQuestion. Do NOT display questions as plain text. Map each elaboration question to an AskUserQuestion call (max 4 questions per call; batch if needed):

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   AskUserQuestion({
     questions: [
       {
         question: "Which new locales should be prioritized for V1?",
         header: "Scope",
         options: [
           { label: "Japanese only", description: "Single locale for initial release" },
           { label: "Japanese + Korean", description: "Two East Asian locales" }
         ],
         multiSelect: false
       }
     ]
   })
   

   After the user answers, map their selections back to option IDs and call chorus_answer_elaboration. If the user selected "Other", set selectedOptionId: null and customText to their input.

4. Submit answers:

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   chorus_answer_elaboration({
     ideaUuid: "<idea-uuid>",
     roundUuid: "<round-uuid>",
     answers: [
       { questionId: "q1", selectedOptionId: "c", customText: null },
       { questionId: "q2", selectedOptionId: null, customText: "Custom hybrid approach" }
     ]
   })
   

   Answer format:

   • Select an option: selectedOptionId: "a", customText: null
   • Select an option + add a note: selectedOptionId: "a", customText: "additional context"
   • Choose "Other" (free text): selectedOptionId: null, customText: "your answer" — customText is required when no option is selected

5. Review answers and confirm with the owner (@mention flow):

   After answers are submitted, @mention the answerer (typically the agent's owner) with a summary of your understanding. This prevents misinterpretation before you validate.

   a. Get owner info from checkin response (agent.owner) or search:

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   chorus_search_mentionables({ query: "owner-name" })
   

   b. Post a summary comment on the idea:

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   chorus_add_comment({
     targetType: "idea",
     targetUuid: "<idea-uuid>",
     content: "@[Owner Name](user:owner-uuid) I've reviewed the elaboration answers. Here's my understanding:\n\n- Key requirement 1: ...\n- Key requirement 2: ...\n\nDoes this match your intent?"
   })
   

   c. Wait for confirmation via comments.

   d. Based on the response:

   • Confirmed — Proceed to validate with empty issues
   • Additions/corrections — Incorporate feedback, optionally start a follow-up round
   • Unclear — Ask clarifying questions via another comment

6. Validate the elaboration:

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   chorus_pm_validate_elaboration({
     ideaUuid: "<idea-uuid>",
     roundUuid: "<round-uuid>",
     issues: [],
     followUpQuestions: []
   })
   

   If issues are found (contradictions, ambiguities, incomplete answers), include them in issues and provide followUpQuestions for a new round:

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   chorus_pm_validate_elaboration({
     ideaUuid: "<idea-uuid>",
     roundUuid: "<round-uuid>",
     issues: [
       { questionId: "q1", type: "ambiguity", description: "Role-based access selected but no roles defined" }
     ],
     followUpQuestions: [
       { id: "fq1", text: "Which specific roles should have access?", category: "functional", options: [...] }
     ]
   })
   

7. Check elaboration status at any time:

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   chorus_get_elaboration({ ideaUuid: "<idea-uuid>" })
   

Elaboration as audit trail: Even if the user discusses requirements with you outside the formal elaboration flow, record key decisions as elaboration rounds so they are persisted and visible to the team.

Question categories: functional, non_functional, business_context, technical_context, user_scenario, scope

Validation issue types: contradiction, ambiguity, incomplete

Tips

• When combining multiple ideas, explain how they relate in the proposal description
• Elaboration improves Proposal quality — don't skip it unless the requirements are trivially clear
• Use AskUserQuestion for all interactive questions — never plain text
• Record decisions made in conversation as elaboration rounds for auditability
• Always @mention the owner to confirm understanding before validating

Next

• Once elaboration is resolved, use /proposal to create a Proposal with document and task drafts
• For platform overview and shared tools, see /chorus