# PAI v2.4.0 — The Algorithm
**Our first attempt at a general problem solver built into PAI to pursue Euphoric Surprise**
[](https://github.com/danielmiessler/PAI/releases/tag/v2.4.0)
[](skills/)
[](hooks/)
[](skills/)
---
## The Algorithm
v2.4 introduces **The Algorithm**—a structured, 7-phase approach to problem-solving. It's an experiment in making AI work more verifiable.
### The Problem We're Trying to Solve
Most AI assistants work like this:
```
User asks → AI responds → Hope it's right
```
The Algorithm works like this:
```
User asks → Understand true intent → Build verifiable criteria →
Execute systematically → Verify against criteria → Learn from result
```
The idea is that if you can define testable criteria upfront, you can actually verify whether something worked.
### The 7 Phases
| Phase | Name | Purpose |
|-------|------|---------|
| 1 | **OBSERVE** | Gather information, understand current state |
| 2 | **THINK** | Analyze intent, desired outcome, failure modes |
| 3 | **PLAN** | Build Ideal State Criteria (ISC) - testable success conditions |
| 4 | **BUILD** | Construct the solution components |
| 5 | **EXECUTE** | Take action, track progress against criteria |
| 6 | **VERIFY** | Confirm all criteria met with evidence |
| 7 | **LEARN** | Capture insights, define next steps |
### Ideal State Criteria (ISC)
The core mechanism is **Ideal State Criteria**—exactly 8-word, binary-testable conditions that define success:
```
🎯 ISC TRACKER ════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
│ # │ Criterion (exactly 8 words) │ Status │ Evidence │
├───┼────────────────────────────────────┼─────────────────┼────────────────┤
│ 1 │ All unit tests pass after fix applied │ ✅ VERIFIED │ pytest: 47/47 │
│ 2 │ No regressions in existing functionality │ ✅ VERIFIED │ CI green │
│ 3 │ Error message matches user expectation │ ✅ VERIFIED │ Screenshot │
└───┴────────────────────────────────────┴─────────────────┴────────────────┘
SCORE: 3/3 verified │ ANTI: 0 triggered │ RESULT: COMPLETE
```
**Why 8 words?** It forces precision. You can't be vague in 8 words. Each criterion should be testable in under 2 seconds.
### Anti-Criteria
The Algorithm also tracks what must NOT happen:
```
⚠️ ANTI-CRITERIA CHECK
│ ! │ No credentials exposed in output │ ✅ AVOIDED │
│ ! │ No breaking changes to public API │ ✅ AVOIDED │
```
This prevents the common AI failure mode of solving one problem while creating another.
---
## Capabilities System
The Algorithm has access to various capabilities it can use during each phase:
### Available Capabilities
| Capability | Purpose | When to Use |
|------------|---------|-------------|
| **Skills** | Pre-built expertise for specific domains | Domain knowledge needed |
| **Agents** | Specialized personalities for focused work | Parallel work, delegation |
| **Research** | Multi-model research with synthesis | Information gathering |
| **Red Team** | Adversarial analysis, stress testing | Validating ideas |
| **First Principles** | Fundamental analysis without assumptions | Complex problems |
| **Be Creative** | Extended thinking, expanded creativity | Ideation, novel solutions |
| **Browser** | Visual verification, screenshots | UI testing |
| **Plan Mode** | Deep analysis before implementation | Major work |
### Capability Selection
Before each phase, the system considers which capabilities might help. The goal is to avoid defaulting to "just do it directly" when a skill or agent would do better.
---
## What's New in v2.4
### Major Features
| Feature | Description |
|---------|-------------|
| **The Algorithm** | 7-phase problem-solving with ISC tracking |
| **29 Skills** | Up from 20—expanded domain coverage |
| **15 Hooks** | Refined hook architecture |
| **331 Workflows** | Comprehensive automation library |
| **Improved Wizard** | Better interactive setup with voice support |
| **Cross-Platform** | Enhanced bash/zsh detection and support |
| **Voice Notifications** | ElevenLabs integration for spoken alerts |
| **Observability Dashboard** | Real-time system monitoring |
### Speed & Performance
- **Faster hook execution** — Streamlined hook architecture
- **Reduced context overhead** — Smarter context loading
- **Parallel agent execution** — Multiple agents work simultaneously
- **Incremental file operations** — Only process what changed
### Installation Improvements
- **Interactive wizard** with readline prompts (not just piped stdin)
- **Voice ID selection** — Choose from Adam, Rachel, or Antoni voices
- **Auto shell detection** — Works with bash and zsh automatically
- **Projects directory configuration** — Set your workspace path
- **Custom catchphrase** — Personalize your DA's greeting
### Templating & Structure
- **Cleaner settings.json** — Template with sensible defaults
- **Sanitized paths** — No hardcoded `/Users/daniel/` leaks
- **Better hooks organization** — Clear lib/ separation
- **Allowlist enforcement** — Only approved content in releases
---
## Full Release Contents
```
.claude/
├── PAIInstallWizard.ts # Interactive setup wizard
├── settings.json # Template configuration
├── statusline-command.sh # 4-mode responsive status line
├── statusline-debug.sh # Status line debugging
│
├── hooks/ # 15 event hooks
│ ├── LoadContext.hook.ts
│ ├── ExplicitRatingCapture.hook.ts
│ ├── ImplicitSentimentCapture.hook.ts
│ └── ... (12 more)
│
├── skills/ # 29 production skills
│ ├── CORE/ # Algorithm and system core
│ ├── Agents/ # Agent personalities
│ ├── Art/ # Visual content creation
│ ├── Browser/ # Browser automation
│ ├── Research/ # Multi-model research
│ └── ... (24 more)
│
├── agents/ # Named agent definitions
├── lib/ # Shared utilities
├── MEMORY/ # Learning capture system
├── Observability/ # Real-time dashboard
└── VoiceServer/ # Voice notification server
```
---
## Quick Start
```bash
# 1. Clone the repo (if you haven't already)
git clone https://github.com/danielmiessler/PAI.git
cd PAI/Releases/v2.4
# 2. Backup existing installation (if any)
[ -d ~/.claude ] && mv ~/.claude ~/.claude-backup-$(date +%Y%m%d)
# 3. Copy the complete release
cp -r .claude ~/
# 4. Run the configuration wizard
cd ~/.claude && bun run PAIInstallWizard.ts
# 5. Restart Claude Code to activate hooks
```
### The Wizard Will Ask For
| Prompt | Purpose |
|--------|---------|
| **Your name** | Personalization throughout the system |
| **Projects directory** | Where your work lives (default: ~/Projects) |
| **AI name** | What to call your assistant (default: Kai) |
| **Startup catchphrase** | What your DA says on startup |
| **ElevenLabs API key** | Optional voice notifications |
### Shell Support
The wizard auto-detects your shell and configures the appropriate file:
- **zsh** → `~/.zshrc`
- **bash** → `~/.bashrc`
---
## The 29 Skills
### Core System
| Skill | Purpose |
|-------|---------|
| **CORE** | The Algorithm, steering rules, identity |
| **Agents** | Agent personalities and spawning |
| **PAIUpgrade** | System improvement extraction |
### Research & Intelligence
| Skill | Purpose |
|-------|---------|
| **Research** | Multi-model parallel research |
| **OSINT** | Open source intelligence gathering |
| **PrivateInvestigator** | Ethical people-finding |
| **AnnualReports** | Security report aggregation |
| **SECUpdates** | Security news monitoring |
### Creative & Analysis
| Skill | Purpose |
|-------|---------|
| **Art** | Visual content, diagrams, icons |
| **BeCreative** | Extended thinking mode |
| **FirstPrinciples** | Fundamental analysis |
| **RedTeam** | Adversarial validation |
| **Council** | Multi-agent debate |
| **Prompting** | Meta-prompt generation |
### Development
| Skill | Purpose |
|-------|---------|
| **Browser** | Playwright automation |
| **CreateCLI** | TypeScript CLI generation |
| **CreateSkill** | Skill structure creation |
| **Evals** | Agent evaluation framework |
| **Documents** | Document processing |
### Specialized
| Skill | Purpose |
|-------|---------|
| **Telos** | Life goals and projects |
| **Recon** | Security reconnaissance |
| **WebAssessment** | Web security testing |
| **PromptInjection** | LLM security testing |
| **BrightData** | Progressive URL scraping |
| **Apify** | Social media scraping |
| **Fabric** | 240+ prompt patterns |
| **Aphorisms** | Quote management |
| **VoiceServer** | Voice notification control |
---
## Named Agents
Specialized personalities for focused work:
| Agent | Specialty |
|-------|-----------|
| **Algorithm** | ISC tracking, verification work |
| **Architect** | System design, distributed systems |
| **Engineer** | TDD, implementation patterns |
| **Artist** | Visual content, prompt engineering |
| **Designer** | UX/UI, accessibility |
| **QATester** | Browser automation, verification |
| **Pentester** | Security testing |
| **Intern** | High-agency generalist |
| **GeminiResearcher** | Multi-perspective research |
| **GrokResearcher** | Contrarian analysis |
| **CodexResearcher** | Technical archaeology |
| **ClaudeResearcher** | Academic synthesis |
---
## The Goal: Euphoric Surprise
The target we're aiming for is **Euphoric Surprise**—results thorough enough that you're genuinely delighted, not just satisfied.
The Algorithm tries to make this measurable:
1. **Ideal State** — What would make you say "wow"?
2. **Criteria** — Break that into testable conditions
3. **Verification** — Prove each condition is met
4. **Learning** — Capture what worked for next time
Whether it actually achieves this consistently is still being figured out.
---
## Upgrading from v2.3
v2.4 is a significant upgrade. Recommended approach:
```bash
# 1. Backup your current installation
mv ~/.claude ~/.claude-v2.3-backup
# 2. Install v2.4
cp -r .claude ~/
# 3. Run the wizard
cd ~/.claude && bun run PAIInstallWizard.ts
# 4. Migrate personal content
# Copy USER/ and MEMORY/ from backup if desired
```
**Breaking changes:**
- `install.ts` → `PAIInstallWizard.ts`
- Hook architecture refined (check custom hooks)
- Settings structure updated (wizard handles migration)
---
## Resources
- **GitHub**: [github.com/danielmiessler/PAI](https://github.com/danielmiessler/PAI)
- **Video**: [PAI Overview](https://youtu.be/Le0DLrn7ta0)
- **Philosophy**: [The Real Internet of Things](https://danielmiessler.com/blog/real-internet-of-things)
---
**PAI v2.4.0** — The Algorithm
*An experiment in verifiable problem-solving.*