Writing User Stories for AI Coding Agents

AI coding agents amplify clear intent. They also amplify ambiguity.

Before a team hands work to an AI-assisted development flow, the story should include enough context for humans to review the output confidently.

AI-ready story checklist

• State the user or workflow affected.
• Explain the outcome, not only the UI change.
• Include acceptance criteria with observable results.
• Name systems, APIs, tables, or integrations if known.
• Call out permission, data, payment, or compliance impact.
• Add examples for edge cases.
• Define the tests or evidence needed before merge.

Readiness labels

Use simple labels during planning:

• Agentable: clear, low-risk, well-tested boundaries.
• Agent-assisted: clear enough for AI help with human review.
• Human-led: domain-heavy, high-risk, or architecture-sensitive.
• Blocked: missing decisions or unclear acceptance criteria.

PlannerPoker can capture this classification in the AI planning report so future implementation and review start from the same shared understanding.