SDLC is becoming ADLC: Limestone's seven-step agent pipeline keeps engineers as approvers
alex_verem · x · 2026-10-16
A retweeted thread from @mardehaym argues the software development lifecycle (SDLC) is transforming into the agentic development lifecycle (ADLC) — but the loop isn't shorter; the bottleneck shifted. Writing code got cheap; holding senior-engineer quality on every change didn't, and the hardest change to get right is the security patch.
LimestoneHQ's routine-ticket pipeline runs in seven steps:
- Engineer writes a ticket with clear acceptance criteria; security patches and dependency upgrades follow the same path
- Agent proposes a plan: files, approach, risks
- Engineer approves the plan
- Agent builds in a sandbox that can reach the model and nothing else
- CI runs the same checks on every change; agent fixes failures
- Engineer reviews the PR; nothing merges without approval
- Approved review feedback becomes a rule for the next run
The accompanying graphic captures the shift: "Agents implement. Engineers approve." Routine tickets go to agents; architecture stays with engineers.
More from coding & agent
- Marc Lou praises PostShiba, a cute indie alternative to AWS SES for email infra — marclou · 2026-10-16
- RExBench: best coding agent completes only 33% of autonomous research extensions — najoungkim · 2026-10-16
- Wiring Pstack skills from a Grok bot into Hermes agent loops — alexcovo_eth · 2026-10-16
- past.dev launches long-term memory API for AI agents, tops BEAM public benchmark — thisiskp_ · 2026-10-16
- Google's CLASHarness benchmarks multi-agent conflicts in computer use, finds frontier VLMs struggle — google · 2026-10-16
- mitsuhiko's AI agent solved multiplayer with PeerJS before he could explain it — mitsuhiko · 2026-10-16