Spec Kit Spark
Build high-quality software faster with AI-driven lifecycle management.
An Adaptive System Life Cycle Development (ASLCD) Toolkit - agent-agnostic, multi-user, and full-lifecycle. A community extension of Spec Kit that combines specification-driven development with constitution-powered quality assurance and right-sized workflows for tasks of any complexity.
Three Pillars
🔀 Agent-Agnostic by Default
Every AI coding assistant is a first-class citizen. Canonical command prompts live in .documentation/commands/ — a single source of truth — while each platform receives only thin shims. Switch agents, use multiple agents on the same project, or onboard new team members on different tools.
👥 Multi-User Personalization
Teams share prompts, but individuals can customize any command via /speckit.personalize. Personalized overrides live in .documentation/{git-user}/commands/, are committed to git, and take priority over shared defaults. Delete the override to revert.
🔄 Full Lifecycle Coverage
From greenfield creation through brownfield discovery, ongoing maintenance, documentation cleanup, release management, and constitution evolution — every phase of the SDLC is supported.
About Spec Kit Spark
Important: This is Spec Kit Spark, a community extension that builds upon the original Spec Kit project.
Part of the WebSpark demonstration suite. Looking for the original? Visit github.com/github/spec-kit
The ASLCD Vision
Traditional spec-driven development works well for greenfield projects with major features. But real-world development includes bug fixes, hotfixes, brownfield codebases, and documentation that drifts over time. Adaptive System Life Cycle Development addresses these gaps:
| Challenge | ASLCD Solution |
|---|---|
| Greenfield bias | /speckit.discover-constitution generates constitutions from existing code |
| Task overhead | /speckit.quickfix provides lightweight workflow for small tasks |
| Documentation drift | /speckit.release archives artifacts and maintains living documentation |
| Repo clutter | /speckit.harvest consolidates knowledge and archives obsolete artifacts |
| Constitution staleness | /speckit.evolve-constitution proposes amendments from PR findings |
| Context management | Right-sized workflows optimize AI agent effectiveness |
What Makes Spark Different
| Feature | Original Spec Kit | Spec Kit Spark |
|---|---|---|
| Core SDD Workflow | ✅ Full support | ✅ Full support |
/speckit.constitution |
✅ Included | ✅ Included |
/speckit.discover-constitution |
❌ | ✅ Brownfield discovery |
/speckit.pr-review |
❌ | ✅ Constitution-based PR review |
/speckit.site-audit |
❌ | ✅ Full codebase auditing |
/speckit.critic |
❌ | ✅ Adversarial risk analysis |
/speckit.quickfix |
❌ | ✅ Lightweight workflow |
/speckit.release |
❌ | ✅ Release documentation |
/speckit.evolve-constitution |
❌ | ✅ Constitution evolution |
/speckit.harvest |
❌ | ✅ Knowledge harvest and cleanup |
| Agent-agnostic architecture | ❌ Duplicated prompts per agent | ✅ Canonical prompts + thin shims |
| Multi-user personalization | ❌ | ✅ /speckit.personalize per-user overrides |
| Multi-agent support | Limited | ✅ 17+ AI agents |
Learn more: Adaptive Lifecycle Documentation
Getting Started
Quick Start
# Install Specify CLI
uv tool install specify-cli --from git+https://github.com/MarkHazleton/spec-kit.git
# New project (greenfield)
specify init my-project --ai claude
# Existing project (brownfield)
cd /path/to/existing-project
specify init --here --ai claude
# Upgrade existing project
specify upgrade
First Steps by Project Type
Greenfield (New Project)
specify init my-project --ai claude
cd my-project
/speckit.constitution # Define governing principles
/speckit.specify # Create first feature spec
Brownfield (Existing Project)
cd /path/to/existing-project
specify init --here --ai claude
/speckit.discover-constitution # Analyze existing patterns
/speckit.site-audit # Baseline technical debt
Guides
- Installation Guide - Detailed setup for all scenarios
- Quick Start Guide - 6-step process walkthrough
- Upgrade Guide - Updating to latest version
- Migration Guide - Migrate from old
.specify/structure - Local Development - Contributing to Spec Kit
Core Concepts
The Constitution
The constitution is the foundational document defining your project's architecture, coding standards, and development guidelines. All Spec Kit commands reference the constitution for validation.
- Create:
/speckit.constitution- Define principles for new projects - Discover:
/speckit.discover-constitution- Generate from existing code - Evolve:
/speckit.evolve-constitution- Propose amendments - Learn More: Constitution Guide
Right-Sized Workflows
Match process overhead to task complexity:
| Task Type | Workflow | When to Use |
|---|---|---|
| Major Feature | Full Spec | Multiple files, architectural impact |
| Bug Fix | Quickfix | Single file, clear root cause |
| Hotfix | Quickfix (expedited) | Production emergency |
| Minor Feature | Quickfix or Spec | Depends on scope |
Adaptive Documentation
Documentation evolves with your system:
- Development: Specs, plans, tasks guide implementation
- Release: Artifacts archived, decisions extracted as ADRs
- Maintenance: Constitution updated as architecture evolves
Command Categories
Constitution Commands
| Command | Purpose | Guide |
|---|---|---|
/speckit.constitution |
Create/update constitution | Constitution Guide |
/speckit.discover-constitution |
Generate from existing code | Constitution Guide |
/speckit.evolve-constitution |
Propose amendments | Adaptive Lifecycle |
Full Spec Workflow
For major features and architectural changes.
| Command | Purpose | Next Step |
|---|---|---|
/speckit.specify |
Define requirements | /speckit.plan |
/speckit.plan |
Technical planning | /speckit.tasks |
/speckit.tasks |
Task breakdown | /speckit.critic |
/speckit.critic |
Risk analysis | /speckit.implement |
/speckit.implement |
Execute tasks | PR Review |
Lightweight Workflow
For bug fixes, hotfixes, and small features.
| Command | Purpose |
|---|---|
/speckit.quickfix |
Create, validate, and track quick fixes |
Quality Assurance
Constitution-powered quality commands that work independently.
| Command | Purpose | Guide |
|---|---|---|
/speckit.pr-review |
Review PRs against constitution | PR Review Guide |
/speckit.site-audit |
Codebase compliance audit | Site Audit Guide |
/speckit.critic |
Adversarial risk analysis | Critic Guide |
Lifecycle Commands
| Command | Purpose |
|---|---|
/speckit.release |
Archive artifacts, generate release docs |
/speckit.harvest |
Knowledge-preserving cleanup for stale docs |
/speckit.repo-story |
Evidence-based repository narrative generation |
/speckit.clarify |
Clarify specification requirements |
/speckit.checklist |
Generate quality checklists |
/speckit.analyze |
Artifact consistency checking |
/speckit.personalize |
Create per-user prompt customizations |
Development Phases
| Phase | Commands | Activities |
|---|---|---|
| Project Initiation | constitution, discover-constitution |
Establish governing principles |
| Baseline Assessment | site-audit |
Quantify technical debt |
| Feature Development | specify, plan, tasks, implement |
Full spec workflow |
| Production Support | quickfix |
Rapid fixes with validation |
| Code Review | pr-review |
Constitution compliance |
| Risk Analysis | critic |
Pre-implementation assessment |
| Release | release |
Archive and document |
| Maintenance | site-audit, evolve-constitution |
Monitor and evolve |
Technical Debt as a Metric
Site audits quantify technical debt through compliance scores:
| Category | Score | Status |
|----------|-------|--------|
| Constitution Compliance | 87% | ⚠️ PARTIAL |
| Security | 95% | ✅ PASS |
| Code Quality | 72% | ⚠️ PARTIAL |
| Dependencies | 85% | ⚠️ PARTIAL |
Track trends over time by running regular audits and comparing results.
Future Direction
Spec Kit Spark is actively developed with plans for:
- Enhanced Debt Tracking - Structured metrics storage and visualization
- Business Value Alignment - Link features to business goals
- CI/CD Integration - Run audits as pipeline steps
- Cross-Project Governance - Organizational-level consistency
See the full Roadmap for details.
Contributing
Spec Kit Spark welcomes contributions:
- Issues: Report bugs or request features
- Discussions: Ask questions or share ideas
- Pull Requests: Fork, branch, and submit
See Local Development for setup instructions.
Credit & Attribution
Full credit goes to the GitHub team for creating the Spec-Driven Development methodology and the original Spec Kit toolkit. Spec Kit Spark is an extension of their work, not a replacement. For the official, GitHub-maintained version, visit github.com/github/spec-kit.