The 7 phases of AI-driven development

Shipping high-quality software with AI coding assistants requires a structured seven-phase development lifecycle to move beyond "vibe coding" toward rigorous engineering. The process begins by defining an idea—whether a full app or a minor refactor—and proceeds into a research phase to cache difficult external API data or repository context into markdown assets. Prototyping follows to establish design taste and architectural feasibility before formalizing requirements into a Product Requirements Document (PRD). This spec is then decomposed into a Kanban board of discrete, parallelizable tickets. Execution occurs through autonomous "Ralph loops" or sequential agents, culminating in a human-led QA phase. This final stage generates a feedback loop where the agent creates a testing plan, the human validates the output, and any deficiencies are cycled back into the Kanban board for iterative refinement until the product reaches a professional standard.