AutoMode's plan, build, verify and review workflow for open-ended Claude Code work: risk bands S0 to S3, stage models, the S3 rule, and how to start it.

Open-ended work runs through the automode:run workflow. Start it with am:run <request>. Automatic entry is off by default, so the router never starts it by itself unless you set "autoWorkflow": true.

Stage	What runs
Risk band	Code, not a model. It sets S0 to S3 from the task text, the planned and changed files, and blocking unknowns. The band only goes up.
Discover	Haiku. One agent for S1. Three agents with separate scopes for S2 and S3.
Plan	Opus. Workstreams, acceptance criteria and risks.
Build	Sonnet. Workstreams that share files never run together. `maxConcurrency` defaults to 1.
Verify	Sonnet runs the commands. Code decides pass or fail from the exit codes. At most 2 rounds.
Review	Opus reads the diff. It is mandatory for S2 and S3, failed checks, unfinished work and incomplete evidence. Sonnet fixes blockers and major correctness or security defects. The verifier checks evidence gaps.

The S3 rule

If a prompt matches security or credentials, migrations or destructive operations, concurrency, external contracts, or payments and sensitive data, the review is mandatory. It runs on Opus when the diff shows critical risk.

Start it, skip it

You want	Type
The workflow for one prompt	`am:run <request>`
No workflow for one prompt	`am:direct <request>`
The workflow for every standard task	`"defaultPath": "workflow"` in `config.json`
The router to enter it by itself	`"autoWorkflow": true`. Decision records show what entry would have done either way.
A review on every change	`"reviewPolicy": "always"`

The six agents the workflow runs are on the agents page.

The workflow

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On this page

Start it, skip it