cost-per-accepted-outcome — Cost per accepted outcome, only on measured data
The cost of an accepted outcome is computed from measured telemetry and the finish contract that accepted it, and is reported only where both exist.
BLOCKED 0 of 4 issues done
- ready
- 0
- blocked
- 4
- active
- 0
- verify
- 0
- done
- 0
- cancelled
- 0
Problem
Cost per token is not a useful unit of work. The unit that matters is what an accepted outcome cost, and that cannot be computed without both telemetry and an acceptance record.
Outcome
The cost of an accepted outcome is computed from measured telemetry and the finish contract that accepted it, and is reported only where both exist.
Current state
Not started, and not startable: it needs execution telemetry underneath it.
Desired state
A completed, accepted task can state what it cost, from measurement rather than estimate.
Scope
- bin
- lib
- test/cases
- docs
- site/data/generated
Out of scope
- Any figure derived from elapsed time or token count as a proxy for progress
Acceptance criteria
- Cost is reported only for outcomes that were accepted by the finish contract
- An outcome without telemetry reports no cost rather than a modelled one
- The denominator is a real acceptance, never a count of sessions
Validation
- bash test/run.sh
Evidence required
- suite
Risks
- Accepted outcomes are rare enough early on that the number is noisy; it must say so.
Issues
Each one is an execution contract with its own acceptance criteria, validation command and required evidence. The wave column is the layer of the dependency graph it sits in.
| issue | status | wave | depends on | title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I0401 | BLOCKED | 0 | — | Define an accepted outcome, and join it to its measurements without storing the join |
| I0402 | BLOCKED | 1 | I0401 | Report cost only where measurement and acceptance both exist |
| I0403 | BLOCKED | 2 | I0402 | Make a thin denominator say so rather than average it away |
| I0404 | BLOCKED | 3 | I0403 | Publish the cost-per-outcome claim with its unit defined beside it |
The graph
flowchart LR
I0401["I0401<br/>Define an accepted outcome, and join it to its measurements without storing the join"]:::blocked
I0402["I0402<br/>Report cost only where measurement and acceptance both exist"]:::blocked
I0403["I0403<br/>Make a thin denominator say so rather than average it away"]:::blocked
I0404["I0404<br/>Publish the cost-per-outcome claim with its unit defined beside it"]:::blocked
I0401 --> I0402
I0402 --> I0403
I0403 --> I0404
classDef done stroke:#16a34a,fill:#052e16,stroke-width:2px
classDef active stroke:#2563eb,fill:#eff6ff,stroke-width:2px
classDef verify stroke:#7c3aed,fill:#f5f3ff,stroke-width:2px
classDef ready stroke:#0891b2,fill:#ecfeff,stroke-width:2px
classDef blocked stroke:#b45309,fill:#fffbeb,stroke-width:2px
classDef cancelled stroke:#6b7280,fill:#f9fafb,stroke-width:2pxCanonical record: .ai/repo/project/milestones/cost-per-accepted-outcome.yaml. Read it back with majordomus plan show cost-per-accepted-outcome.