Decision Gates
Go/no-go decision gates for the Phase 0 to Phase 1 transition. Each gate defines measurable criteria that must be met before committing to major architectural decisions. Gates are linked to research questions, TRL assessments, and validation experiments that provide the evidence for each decision.
Phase 0 Decision Timeline
Gate Details
About Decision Gates
Purpose
Decision gates are formal go/no-go checkpoints that must be passed before committing to major architectural decisions. They convert research uncertainty into actionable engineering decisions.
Evidence-Based
Each gate criterion requires specific, measurable evidence from research questions, TRL assessments, and validation experiments. Gates cannot be passed by consensus alone.
Fail-Forward
Every gate defines both pass and fail outcomes. A failed gate does not stop the project -- it redirects to an alternative architecture with understood tradeoffs.