Context
@tobiu, 2026-06-04: the AGENTS_STARTUP.md boot workflow is "outdated, we are not even using it anymore". On 2026-09-30 the operator asked for the file's removal from this repository.
Sweep attestations (2026-09-30): org-wide issue search for AGENTS_STARTUP: no retirement ticket (#14230 mentions it in passing). Latest 20 open issues here: nothing on this surface. Memory Core: the June deprecation, no decision to keep it.
The Problem
The file is still presented as the first step, and to the wrong reader:
CONTRIBUTING.md:149, "For Autonomous Agents": "Always begin your workflow by reading the AGENTS_STARTUP.md file in the root directory. This contains your core operational mandates." An outside contributor's agent is sent to our maintainers' retired boot protocol, and Hacktoberfest starts 2026-10-01..github/AI_QUICK_START.md lists it (:334), scripts it as step 2 of "Your First Agent Session" (:348–:355), and troubleshoots it (:386).
Historical mentions stay: release notes, the two blog posts, the dated .agents/baselines/cognitive-load-baseline-2026-05-05.md, and the portal's ticket and PR archives describe what happened.
The Fix
Delete AGENTS_STARTUP.md, drop the AI Quick Start steps, and replace the CONTRIBUTING.md step. That step belongs to the contributor door (#18985, @neo-opus-ada), so its new wording is agreed there. The candidate: an outside agent needs nothing to start, and npx neo-agent-skills-agents-md --repo neo --audience contributor prints the contributor guidance after npm install.
Acceptance Criteria
Out of Scope
AGENTS.md and .claude/CLAUDE.md. They leave only once Fleet Manager writes the maintainer instructions into each peer's home (neomjs/neo-agent-brain#644) and every peer starts from it.
Ordering
This lands after neomjs/neo-agent-brain#645, which removes the file from the orchestrator's resume prompt, so no resumed session is ever told to read a missing file. The skills that cite it are neomjs/neo-agent-skills#128.
Origin Session ID: 8c224931-7b3d-4cb5-a43d-86f1735f3636
Context
@tobiu, 2026-06-04: the
AGENTS_STARTUP.mdboot workflow is "outdated, we are not even using it anymore". On 2026-09-30 the operator asked for the file's removal from this repository.Sweep attestations (2026-09-30): org-wide issue search for
AGENTS_STARTUP: no retirement ticket (#14230 mentions it in passing). Latest 20 open issues here: nothing on this surface. Memory Core: the June deprecation, no decision to keep it.The Problem
The file is still presented as the first step, and to the wrong reader:
CONTRIBUTING.md:149, "For Autonomous Agents": "Always begin your workflow by reading theAGENTS_STARTUP.mdfile in the root directory. This contains your core operational mandates." An outside contributor's agent is sent to our maintainers' retired boot protocol, and Hacktoberfest starts 2026-10-01..github/AI_QUICK_START.mdlists it (:334), scripts it as step 2 of "Your First Agent Session" (:348–:355), and troubleshoots it (:386).Historical mentions stay: release notes, the two blog posts, the dated
.agents/baselines/cognitive-load-baseline-2026-05-05.md, and the portal's ticket and PR archives describe what happened.The Fix
Delete
AGENTS_STARTUP.md, drop the AI Quick Start steps, and replace theCONTRIBUTING.mdstep. That step belongs to the contributor door (#18985, @neo-opus-ada), so its new wording is agreed there. The candidate: an outside agent needs nothing to start, andnpx neo-agent-skills-agents-md --repo neo --audience contributorprints the contributor guidance afternpm install.Acceptance Criteria
AGENTS_STARTUP.mdis gone, andgit grep AGENTS_STARTUP -- CONTRIBUTING.md .github/AI_QUICK_START.mdreturns nothing.CONTRIBUTING.md's agent section names a first step that exists, in the wording agreed on #18985.Out of Scope
AGENTS.mdand.claude/CLAUDE.md. They leave only once Fleet Manager writes the maintainer instructions into each peer's home (neomjs/neo-agent-brain#644) and every peer starts from it.Ordering
This lands after neomjs/neo-agent-brain#645, which removes the file from the orchestrator's resume prompt, so no resumed session is ever told to read a missing file. The skills that cite it are neomjs/neo-agent-skills#128.
Origin Session ID: 8c224931-7b3d-4cb5-a43d-86f1735f3636