orchestrator-workflow 0.22.0 → 0.23.0

package/CHANGELOG.md

@@ -5,6 +5,32 @@ All notable changes to `orchestrator-workflow` are documented here.
 The format is based on [Keep a Changelog](https://keepachangelog.com/en/1.1.0/),
 and this project adheres to [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/spec/v2.0.0.html).
 
+## [0.23.0] - 2026-08-24
+
+### Changed
+
+- **Tightened the `implementer-low` tier rule from discretion to a checkable
+  gate on the task contract.** `agents-md-section.md`'s Scaling delegation
+  bullet and `SKILL.md` step 6 ("Delegate implementation") no longer say
+  `-low` "fits mechanical, narrowly scoped tasks" for the implementer;
+  `implementer-low` is now spawned only when none of the following hold: an
+  acceptance criterion demands a test, typecheck, lint, or build run; the task
+  assignment names mutation probes to run; or the task slicer's
+  `suggested_tests` came back non-empty. A task with any of those, including a
+  bugfix that looks mechanical, runs on the unsuffixed implementer or higher.
+  When it is unclear whether a criterion demands a run, exclude
+  `implementer-low`. The explorer and the task-slicer keep the prior
+  discretionary `-low` guidance unchanged, since no equivalent measurement
+  exists for those roles. Operator decision 2026-08-24 after a Tier-A/B
+  measurement of implementer-low as installed (Haiku 4.5) against the default
+  implementer (Sonnet 5, effort medium) (agent-tasks task 7f38899d), blinded,
+  n=8, identical tasks in both tiers: implementer-low reached accept a median
+  320 seconds slower (p=0.016), drew 9 high-plus-critical review findings
+  against 1, and needed 8 fix rounds against 1. The A/B's implementer-low ran
+  on Haiku 4.5, which does not support the `effort` parameter, so the harness
+  ignores the pinned `effort: low` on that model; the measurement compared
+  Haiku 4.5 without effort control against Sonnet 5 at `effort: medium`.
+
 ## [0.22.0] - 2026-08-20
 
 ### Changed

package/INSTALL-AGENT.md

@@ -198,12 +198,13 @@ steps in the repository you were asked to install into.
      ```
    - `.ai/workflow/manifest.json`, exactly this shape (harnesses MUST be an
      array, `profile` is `"minimal"` or `"full"`, models keyed by role,
-     version = the kit version you installed):
+     version = the kit version you installed, read from this kit's own
+     `packages/orchestrator-workflow/package.json` `version` field):
 
      ```json
      {
        "kit": "orchestrator-workflow",
-       "version": "0.5.0",
+       "version": "<kit version you installed>",
        "harnesses": ["claude", "opencode"],
        "profile": "full",
        "tiers": false,
@@ -215,7 +216,7 @@ steps in the repository you were asked to install into.
          "advisor": "opus"
        },
        "files": {},
-       "installedAt": "2026-06-12T00:00:00.000Z"
+       "installedAt": "<ISO 8601 timestamp of this install>"
      }
      ```
 

package/assets/agents-md-section.md

@@ -50,16 +50,36 @@ default, not a ritual.
   changes whose risk or size warrants an independent skeptical pass. Either
   way, review is never skipped.
 - When tier variants are installed (manifest `tiers: true`), the orchestrator
-  picks the effort tier per task by complexity and risk, at its own
-  judgment. The unsuffixed default subagent is the normal case; a `-low`
-  variant fits mechanical, narrowly scoped tasks; `-high`/`-xhigh` fit
-  high-risk changes, hard problems, or repeated failed attempts. Not every
-  role gets every tier: `-xhigh` exists only for the implementer, the
-  reviewer, and the advisor. The reviewer's downshift is `-medium` rather
-  than `-low`, since its default already sits at high. The advisor has no
-  downshift at all: its default `high` is already its only non-`-xhigh`
-  tier. Spawn only variants that are actually installed. Tier choice is a
-  conscious decision, not a ritual; when unsure, use the default.
+  picks the effort tier per task by complexity and risk, at its own judgment.
+  The unsuffixed default subagent is the normal case; `-high`/`-xhigh` fit
+  high-risk changes, hard problems, or repeated failed attempts. For the
+  implementer specifically, `-low` is spawned only when none of the following
+  hold: an acceptance criterion demands a test, typecheck, lint, or build run;
+  the task assignment names mutation probes to run; or the task slicer's
+  `suggested_tests` came back non-empty. This is checkable against the task
+  contract rather than a judgment about how hard the task looks: any one of
+  those three excludes `implementer-low`, and the task runs on the unsuffixed
+  implementer or higher, even when the change looks mechanical (a bugfix
+  included); when it is unclear whether a criterion demands a run, exclude
+  `implementer-low`. This rule is anchored by an A/B measurement of
+  implementer-low as installed (Haiku 4.5) against the default implementer
+  (Sonnet 5, effort medium) (2026-08-24, n=8, identical tasks in both tiers,
+  blinded reviews, agent-tasks task 7f38899d): implementer-low reached accept
+  a median 320 seconds slower (p=0.016), drew 9 high-plus-critical review
+  findings against 1, and needed 8 fix rounds against 1. The A/B's
+  implementer-low ran on Haiku 4.5, which does not support the `effort`
+  parameter (per Anthropic's model reference), so the harness ignores the
+  pinned `effort: low` on that model; the measurement compared Haiku 4.5
+  without effort control against Sonnet 5 at `effort: medium`. For the
+  explorer and the task-slicer, a `-low` variant still suits narrowly scoped,
+  mechanical work; no equivalent measurement exists for those two roles, so
+  their rule is unchanged. Not every role gets every tier: `-xhigh` exists
+  only for the implementer, the reviewer, and the advisor. The reviewer's
+  downshift is `-medium` rather than `-low`, since its default already sits at
+  high. The advisor has no downshift at all: its default `high` is already its
+  only non-`-xhigh` tier. Spawn only variants that are actually installed.
+  Tier choice is a conscious decision, not a ritual; when unsure, use the
+  default.
 - Every unsuffixed default subagent carries its own pinned default effort
   baked into its own file, not inherited from the orchestrator session:
   medium for the explorer, the task-slicer, and the implementer; high for

package/assets/skill/SKILL.md

@@ -141,7 +141,16 @@ directory and the subagents.
    installed `implementer-<tier>` subagents, if any) by the task's
    complexity and risk, at your own judgment, defaulting to the unsuffixed
    subagent when unsure; record a non-default tier choice with a
-   one-line reason in `03-decisions.md` when the task is non-trivial. When a
+   one-line reason in `03-decisions.md` when the task is non-trivial.
+   `implementer-low` is spawned only when none of the following hold: an
+   acceptance criterion demands a test, typecheck, lint, or build run; the
+   task assignment names mutation probes to run; or the task slicer's
+   `suggested_tests` came back non-empty. Any one of those three excludes
+   `implementer-low`, even for a change that looks mechanical (a bugfix
+   included) (2026-08-24 A/B measurement, n=8: implementer-low reached accept
+   a median 320 seconds slower, p=0.016, with 9 high-plus-critical review
+   findings against 1 and 8 fix rounds against 1). When it is unclear
+   whether a criterion demands a run, exclude `implementer-low`. When a
    task's acceptance rests on a test that must fail without the change, name
    the mutation probes to run in the task assignment; the implementer reports
    each one in the output contract's `mutation_probes` field (apply the mutant

package/package.json

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {
   "name": "orchestrator-workflow",
-  "version": "0.22.0",
+  "version": "0.23.0",
   "description": "Installer for an orchestrator-led agent workflow: .ai/ run state, an AGENTS.md policy section, and per-harness subagent definitions for Claude Code, OpenAI Codex, and opencode",
   "main": "dist/index.js",
   "type": "module",