Release readiness — `staging` → `main`

_QA round run 01KXZE14FY9SSQQ8ENFVZVYXAD, 2026-07-21. Analyzed staging HEAD 95a0b6bab+ (branch moved during the round — a concurrent kip-sdk run was actively committing; see Caveats)._

Verdict: GO — `ci.yml` is fully green on the fixed staging sha

The bug fixes this release claims to deliver are **real and correct**, but the round found they shipped **structurally unguarded** — their tests either did not exist or did not run in CI, and one shipped fix (RC-1) was actively breaking every plugin-install CI lane. All of that is now closed on staging and **confirmed green by a real CI run against the release sha**.

**CI confirmation (ci.yml run 29812297914 = SUCCESS, all jobs):** Docs QA ✓, Lint/Tests/Package ✓ (the newly-wired policy/tools/trust-core security suites), Observer Dashboard ✓, Workspace Coverage ✓ (Caveat 1 fixed). **Live Stack bp/predefined interactive claude-code/gpt-5.5 lane ✓** — the exact install-mode lane RC-1 was breaking now passes end-to-end.

Only by-design deferrals remain (owner's call), none release-blocking:

• **kip-sdk CI (recommendation):** the largest part of the diff, but a **new/unreleased** package; its cross-OS workflow already exists untracked as the concurrent kip run's artifact — commit it. Not committed here to avoid clobbering that active run.
• **RC-4 (recommendation):** ci.yml runs only on pull_request; add a staging push-trigger or branch protection so direct-push landings can't ship unguarded again.
• **RC-3 (deferred, owner-approved):** external dispatcher ref hygiene, not product code.

_Original Caveat 1 (transport-adapter Workspace Coverage TS2307) was **introduced by this release** (transport-adapter's proxy-attestation wiring added trust-core/policy-adapter deps; the isolated job built only atlas first) and masked by RC-4. Fixed in 26ff42325: build the dependency closure in order. Reproduced locally (rm dist → identical TS2307) and confirmed green in the CI re-run above._

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1. What this release claims to fix

162 commits since the last main merge (23a00eafd, 2026-07-01). The volume is **inverted from the risk**: 192 of 408 changed files are the never-before-released @a5c-ai/kip-sdk, whose regression risk is near-zero regardless of coverage. The real release risk sits in ~10 small commits against already-shipped surfaces, clustered as:

2. Validation status per cluster (after adversarial refutation)

Verdicts are **post-refutation** — every "covered"/"partial" claim was attacked, several downgraded. The recurring finding: **tests existed but did not run in CI.**

3. CI stack matrix — triage

ci.yml (lint/build/typecheck/test) triggers only on pull_request; the July work landed via **direct push**, so **ci.yml last ran on staging 2026-06-30** and never exercised the release contents (**RC-4**). Root causes from the failing 2026-07-20 runs:

4. Gaps closed this round

All committed surgically (per-gap explicit git add, not a broad add — a concurrent kip-sdk run had uncommitted WIP in the shared tree) and pushed to staging.

**Gates after remediation:** local build:sdk && test:sdk && verify:metadata → **2328 passed / 9 skipped**. Adversarial review of the 6 core commits → **89/100, zero gamed tests, no fallbacks, no weakened/skipped tests, lockfile untouched**; its one actionable finding (RC-1 test didn't guard the runner's executed list) closed by 4d5a1451b.

5. CI verification against the fixed sha (G-RC4-VERIFY)

Dispatched ci.yml and Live Stack via workflow_dispatch --ref staging:

• **ci.yml 29809037087** — "Lint, Tests, Package" = **success** (proves the newly-wired security suites + build + test:sdk pass on the release sha). Overall run = failure **only** from the pre-existing "Workspace Coverage / transport-adapter" job (Caveat 1) — no commit in this release touches transport-adapter.
• **Live Stack vanilla lane 29809134002** — claude-code/gpt-5.5 non-interactive **vanilla** lane = **success** (confirms the branch live-stack works and the RC-2 change is safe).
• **Live Stack bp lane 29811363446** — dispatched to exercise the RC-1 install path end-to-end (in flight at report time). RC-1 is otherwise proven at the unit level (revert-verified regression tests guarding both fix sites) and by static mechanism analysis.

6. Tracked debts / deferred (owner-visible)

• **Caveat 1 — ci.yml Workspace Coverage / transport-adapter QA surface fails.** Pre-existing, unrelated to this release; surfaced only because RC-4 kept ci.yml from ever running on the branch.
• **RC-4 root fix (recommendation, not applied):** ci.yml runs only on PRs; direct-push landings never gate. Add a push: [staging] trigger or branch protection so this can't recur. Not applied here to avoid running the full matrix on every commit without owner sign-off.
• **G-CI-KIP (recommendation):** kip-sdk runs in no *committed* CI. A complete cross-OS workflow (.github/workflows/kip-conformance-cross-os.yml) already exists **untracked** as the concurrent kip run's artifact — commit it. Not committed here to avoid clobbering another active run's WIP; kip is unreleased (low risk).
• **G-C8-REG (recommendation):** kip register --include/--exclude/--git-sha flags have no direct test. Same kip territory; unreleased.
• **RC-3 (deferred, owner-approved):** QA Dispatch non-resolving refs come from an external dispatcher, not product code.

7. Caveats on the round itself

A **concurrent orchestration run** (kip-entity-linker) was committing to staging throughout this round; HEAD moved several times and its uncommitted kip-sdk WIP shared the working tree. All audits recorded the sha analyzed; all commits were surgical to avoid bundling that WIP; audit subagents were read-only or restored their scratch edits. This is a standing hazard of overlapping runs on one branch, not specific to this release.