Learning Loop

The Learning Loop is a structured cognitive continuity protocol ensuring that knowledge survives across isolated agent sessions. It is designed to be universally applicable to any agent framework.

CRITICAL: Anti-Simulation Rules

YOU MUST ACTUALLY PERFORM THE STEPS LISTED BELOW. Describing what you "would do", summarizing expected output, or marking a step complete without actually doing the work is a PROTOCOL VIOLATION.

Closure is NOT optional. If the user says "end session" or you are wrapping up, you MUST run the full closure sequence. Skipping any step means the next agent starts blind.

The Iron Chain

Prerequisite: You must establish a valid session context upon Wakeup before modifying any code.

Orientation → Synthesis → Strategic Gate → Red Team Audit → [Execution] → Loop Complete (Return to Orchestrator)

Phase I: Orientation (The Scout)

Goal: Establish Identity & Context. Trigger: First action upon environment initialization.

Identity Check: Read any local orientation documents or primers provided by the user's environment.
Context Loading: Retrieve the historical session state (the "Context Snapshot" or equivalent state file) to understand what the previous agent accomplished.
Report Readiness: Output: "Orientation complete. Context loaded. Ready."

STOP: Do NOT proceed to work until you have completed Phase I.

Phase II: Intelligence Synthesis

Mode Selection: Decide if you are doing standard documentation (recording ADRs) or exploratory research.
Synthesis: Perform your research. Aggregate findings into clear, modular markdown files in the project's designated learning/ or memory/ directory.

Phase III: Strategic Gate (HITL)

Human-in-the-Loop Required

Review: Present architectural findings or strategic shifts to the User.
Gate: Wait for explicit "Approved" or "Proceed".
- If FAIL: Backtrack to Phase VIII (Self-Correction).

Phase IV: Red Team Audit

Bundle Context: Compile your proposed plans into a single, cohesive research packet.
Action: Submit the packet to the User (or a designated Red Team adversarial sub-agent) for rigorous critique.
Gate: Do not proceed to execution until the Audit returns a "Ready" verdict.

Execution Branch (Post-Audit)

Choose your Execution Mode:

Option A: Standard Agent (Single Loop)

Action: You write the code, run tests, and verify yourself.

Option B: Dual Loop

Action: Delegate execution to a scoped, isolated Inner Loop agent.
Command: Open the dual-loop SKILL. Execute according to its instructions.
Return: Once Inner Loop finishes, resume here at Phase V (Synthesis).

Session Close (MANDATORY — DO NOT SKIP)

This loop is now complete. You must formally exit the loop and return control to the Orchestrator.

Phase V: Completion & Handoff

Verify Exit Condition: Confirm that the research/synthesis acceptance criteria have been met.
Return Data: Pass the synthesized documents and context back up to the Orchestrator.
Terminate Loop: Explicitly state "Learning Loop Complete. Passing control to Orchestrator for Retrospective and Closure."
STOP: Do not attempt to seal the session, persist to long-term memory, or commit to Git. The global ecosystem layers will handle that.

Phase Reference

Phase	Name	Action Required
I	Orientation	Load context and assert readiness
II	Synthesis	Create/modify research artifacts
III	Strategic Gate	Obtain "Proceed" from User
IV	Red Team Audit	Compile packet for adversary review
V	Handoff	Return control to Orchestrator to begin global Closure

Task Tracking Rules

You are not "done" until the active task tracker says you're done.

Always use the user's preferred task tracking system (e.g., markdown kanbans, automated CLIs) to move tasks.
NEVER mark a task done without running its verification sequence first.
If using a markdown board, always display the updated board to the user to confirm the move registered.

Dual-Loop Integration

When a Learning Loop runs inside a Dual-Loop session:

Phase	Dual-Loop Role	Notes
I (Orientation)	Outer Loop boots, orients	Reads boot files + spec context
II-III (Synthesis/Gate)	Outer Loop plans, user approves	Strategy Packet generated
IV (Audit)	Outer Loop snapshots before delegation	Pre-execution checkpoint
(Execution)	Inner Loop performs tactical work	Code-only, isolated
Verification	Outer Loop inspects Inner Loop output	Validates against criteria
V (Handoff)	Outer Loop receives results	Triggers global retrospective

Key rule: The Inner Loop does NOT run Learning Loop phases. All cognitive continuity is the Outer Loop's responsibility.

Cross-reference: dual-loop SKILL

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