Phase 0: Research, Architecture, and Documentation Foundation

Establish the foundational research, system architecture, and documentation for EMEP. This phase delivers core conceptual assets, architectural decisions, and a comprehensive glossary before any implementation begins.

Phase 0 establishes the intellectual and structural foundation for the Entangled Model Evolution Platform (EMEP). Before writing implementation code, the team produces a complete research corpus, system architecture, and living documentation suite. This phase ensures every subsequent engineering decision traces back to documented rationale, canonical terminology, and validated design choices.

Purpose

The purpose of Phase 0 is to eliminate ambiguity before implementation. EMEP is a complex system spanning model merging, evolutionary search, evaluation, and deployment. Without a shared vocabulary, explicit architecture, and recorded decisions, later phases accumulate technical debt and inconsistent interfaces. Phase 0 produces the reference layer that all other phases depend on.

Entry Criteria

• Project charter approved and budget allocated
• Core team assigned (research, architecture, technical writing)
• Access to relevant model merging literature and baseline model repositories
• Documentation toolchain (Mintlify, version control, ADR template) provisioned

Exit Criteria

• All deliverables listed below are published and internally reviewed
• Consistency audit passed: terminology, cross-references, and canonical component names are uniform across all documents
• Architecture review signed off by at least two senior engineers
• ADR log contains no open or disputed decisions

Primary Components

Phase 0 does not produce executable components, but it defines the interfaces and responsibilities that later phases implement:

• ModelRegistry: defined as the canonical catalog for model metadata, versions, and lineage
• ModelLoader: specified as the abstraction for loading checkpoints into memory
• ModelCompatibilityAnalyzer: described as the service that determines whether two or more models can be merged
• TensorEngine: outlined as the low-level tensor operation layer
• MergeEngine: conceptualized as the orchestrator for combining model weights
• EvaluationEngine: scoped as the framework for assessing merged model quality
• EvolutionEngine: defined as the search layer that proposes candidate merges
• ExperimentTracker: specified as the observability layer for runs and metrics
• ArtifactStore: described as the persistent storage for models, logs, and artifacts

Deliverables

Deliverable	Path	Description
Overview	/overview/*	Product vision, value proposition, and user personas
Research	/research/*	Literature review, paper summaries, and baseline comparisons
Capability Maps	/maps/*	Functional and non-functional capability matrices
Architecture	/architecture/*	System diagrams, component specs, and data-flow documentation
Diagrams	/diagrams/*	Visual reference for all major subsystems
ADRs	ADR log	Architecture Decision Records for every significant choice
Glossary	/overview/glossary	Canonical terminology and definitions

Dependencies

Phase 0 has no upstream phase dependencies. It is the root of the dependency graph. All subsequent phases depend on its outputs.

Key Tasks

Track Phase 0 work in the project task registry:

• Project Tasks

Typical Phase 0 tasks include:

1. Literature review and paper annotation
2. Stakeholder interviews and requirement gathering
3. Draft system context and container diagrams
4. Write and ratify ADR-001 through ADR-00N
5. Build Mintlify documentation skeleton and navigation
6. Conduct consistency audit and terminology review

Risks

• Scope creep in documentation: Without a boundary, Phase 0 can expand indefinitely. Mitigate by time-boxing each deliverable.
• Stale decisions: ADRs may become outdated before implementation begins. Mitigate by scheduling a mid-Phase 1 review of all ADRs.
• Inconsistent terminology: Multiple authors may introduce divergent vocabulary. Mitigate by enforcing the glossary as the single source of truth.

See the full risk register for tracked items and mitigations:

• Risk Register

Quality Gate

Phase 0 is complete when the following checklist is fully satisfied:

• Every canonical component name appears in the glossary with a definition
• Every ADR has a status of “Accepted” or “Superseded”
• All /architecture/* pages cross-link to related /research/* pages where appropriate
• Consistency audit report lists zero unresolved terminology conflicts
• At least one senior engineer has approved the architecture overview
• Diagrams in /diagrams/* use consistent notation and are exportable

Roadmap Position

The diagram below shows Phase 0 at the start of the EMEP roadmap. It feeds every downstream phase.