Workflow Detection

Wai automatically detects project patterns and provides context-aware suggestions based on your current state.

How It Works

When you run wai status, wai analyzes:

Current project phase
Number and type of artifacts
Plugin state (git status, open issues, etc.)
Recent activity

Based on this analysis, it detects workflow patterns and suggests relevant next steps.

Detected Patterns

NewProject

Condition: Project exists but has no artifacts yet, in research phase.

Suggestions:

Add initial research with wai add research "..."
Import existing research with wai add research --file notes.md
Run tutorial for guidance: wai tutorial

Example:

$ wai status
Project: my-app
Phase: research
Artifacts: 0

Pattern: NewProject
Suggestions:
  - Start gathering research: wai add research "Initial findings"
  - Import existing notes: wai add research --file notes.md

ResearchPhaseMinimal

Condition: In research phase with few (≤1) research artifacts.

Suggestions:

Continue gathering information
Add more research artifacts
Consider when you have enough to move to design

Example:

$ wai status
Project: my-app
Phase: research
Research artifacts: 1

Pattern: ResearchPhaseMinimal
Suggestions:
  - Add more research: wai add research "Additional findings"
  - When ready, advance: wai phase next

ReadyToImplement

Condition: In plan or design phase with design documents created.

Suggestions:

Move to implement phase
Review designs before starting
Set up development environment

Example:

$ wai status
Project: my-app
Phase: design
Design artifacts: 2
Plan artifacts: 1

Pattern: ReadyToImplement
Suggestions:
  - Ready to implement: wai phase next
  - Review designs: wai search "design" --in my-app
  - Create handoff: wai handoff create my-app

ImplementPhaseActive

Condition: Currently in implement phase.

Suggestions:

Run tests regularly
Document implementation decisions
Consider moving to review when done

Example:

$ wai status
Project: my-app
Phase: implement

Pattern: ImplementPhaseActive
Suggestions:
  - Run tests: cargo test
  - Document decisions: wai add design "Implementation notes"
  - When done, advance: wai phase next

Context-Aware Commands

Suggestions include specific commands tailored to your project:

$ wai status
Project: api-server
Phase: implement
Plugin: beads (5 open issues)
Plugin: git (uncommitted changes)

Suggestions:
  - Review open issues: wai beads ready
  - Check git status: git status
  - Run tests: cargo test
  - Commit changes: git add -A && git commit

Plugin Integration

Workflow detection incorporates plugin context:

With beads plugin:

Suggests reviewing open issues
Recommends closing completed work
Highlights blockers

With git plugin:

Detects uncommitted changes
Suggests creating commits
Recommends pushing to remote

With openspec plugin:

Shows active change proposals
Displays implementation progress
Suggests next specification steps

JSON Output

Get structured workflow information:

wai status --json | jq '.suggestions'

Output:

[
  {
    "pattern": "ReadyToImplement",
    "suggestion": "Move to implement phase",
    "command": "wai phase next"
  },
  {
    "pattern": "ReadyToImplement",
    "suggestion": "Review designs before implementing",
    "command": "wai search \"design\" --in my-app"
  }
]

Custom Patterns

While wai detects common patterns automatically, you can create custom workflow patterns through plugins.

Example Custom Pattern Plugin

name: my-workflow
description: Custom workflow detector
hooks:
  - type: on_status
    command: |
      if [ -f .needs-review ]; then
        echo "Ready for review - run: make review"
      fi
    inject_as: custom_workflow

Best Practices

Follow Suggestions

Wai’s suggestions are designed to guide you through proven workflows:

Research → gather information
Design → make decisions
Plan → break down work
Implement → build
Review → validate
Archive → document and close

Ignore When Needed

Suggestions are guidance, not rules. Feel free to:

Skip phases that don’t apply
Go back when you need more research
Add artifacts in any phase
Move forward at your own pace

Use with Plugins

Workflow detection works best with plugins:

beads — Track concrete tasks alongside high-level workflow
git — Keep version control in sync with project phases
openspec — Align specifications with implementation phases

Disable Suggestions

To hide workflow suggestions:

wai status --quiet

Or suppress output:

wai status -q

Keyboard shortcuts

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