Modern AI build paths
Use the same five-step workflow, but make the target surface explicit in Step 3 (Technical Design). Pick the row that matches your target, adopt the default, and copy its "Add to Tech Design" items into your Tech Design doc.
Vendor claims below rot quickly. Follow the Freshness policy and re-check official docs before merging anything vendor-specific.
| Target | Good default | Add to Tech Design |
|---|---|---|
| Standard web MVP | Next.js App Router or the simplest stack your team can maintain | Routes, data model, auth, deployment, browser smoke tests |
| OpenAI product path | Responses API first; Agents SDK when orchestration, tracing, handoffs, or guardrails matter; Apps SDK/MCP for ChatGPT surfaces | Model family, structured outputs, hosted tools, MCP trust boundary, evals, data retention |
| Vercel AI path | AI SDK 6, AI Gateway, AI Elements, v0 API, or Vercel Workflow when durable agents are needed | Gateway/direct provider, budgets, fallbacks, telemetry, UI primitives, workflow retries |
| Cloudflare AI path | Workers AI for budget inference; AI Gateway for controls; Agents SDK + Durable Objects for stateful agents; AI Search/Vectorize for retrieval | Worker limits, Gateway settings, AI Search vs Vectorize, MCP auth, hard cost ceilings |
| Google path | Google AI Studio for fast prototypes; Antigravity/Antigravity CLI for agentic implementation; Gemini CLI only where still explicitly supported | Export-to-GitHub/local verification, artifact review, migration status, data policy |
| Claude/Codex/Cursor/Copilot build path | Use repo-owned AGENTS.md plus thin tool adapters, subagents/background agents for bounded tasks, and reviewer/tester passes | Tool-specific config, branch/worktree isolation, verification commands, evidence report |
| Local/open model path | LM Studio/Ollama for local runtime; Continue/Cline/Aider/OpenHands for local workflows; llama.cpp/MLX for advanced setups | Hardware, endpoint, model family, tool calling, MCP allowlist, fallback, local log storage |
| Builder prototype path | v0, Lovable, Bolt, Replit Agent, Google AI Studio, Base44, Tempo, Builder.io, Framer | Source ownership, GitHub sync/export, local build, secrets, auth/RLS, rollback, exit plan |
Related guides
- AI feature patterns — designing AI product features
- AI agent security — MCP, agent permissions, prompt injection, provider retention
- Builder exit review — leaving builder-generated projects safely
- Agent tooling compatibility — routing tasks across coding agents