ZORO: Active Rules for Reliable Vibe Coding

Fuente: arXiv
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Hauptverfasser: Ma, Jenny, Wang, Sitong, Kung, Joshua H., Chilton, Lydia B.
Format: Preprint
Veröffentlicht: 2026
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author Ma, Jenny
Wang, Sitong
Kung, Joshua H.
Chilton, Lydia B.
author_facet Ma, Jenny
Wang, Sitong
Kung, Joshua H.
Chilton, Lydia B.
contents Rules files (e.g., AGENTSmd, CLAUDEmd) are the primary mechanism for human-agent alignment when developers vibe code. However, they remain passive: it is not immediately apparent when rules are being used or followed, or how to improve them. To transform rules from passive text into active controls, we introduce ZORO, an interactive interface that integrates directly with a coding agent and anchors rules to every step of the coding process. After an agent generates an initial plan, ZORO enriches the plan with rules, enforces the rules during implementation by requiring the agent prove that each rule was followed, and allows users to provide in-situ feedback when they are unsatisfied with a rule application to evolve the ruleset. A technical evaluation shows that coding agents follow rules more with ZORO than without. A user study demonstrates a change in people's behavior and cognitive strategies when rules are at the forefront of vibe coding. We discuss how making rules active in agentic systems unlocks broader opportunities for human-agent alignment in coding settings and beyond.
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id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2604_15625
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle ZORO: Active Rules for Reliable Vibe Coding
Ma, Jenny
Wang, Sitong
Kung, Joshua H.
Chilton, Lydia B.
Human-Computer Interaction
Rules files (e.g., AGENTSmd, CLAUDEmd) are the primary mechanism for human-agent alignment when developers vibe code. However, they remain passive: it is not immediately apparent when rules are being used or followed, or how to improve them. To transform rules from passive text into active controls, we introduce ZORO, an interactive interface that integrates directly with a coding agent and anchors rules to every step of the coding process. After an agent generates an initial plan, ZORO enriches the plan with rules, enforces the rules during implementation by requiring the agent prove that each rule was followed, and allows users to provide in-situ feedback when they are unsatisfied with a rule application to evolve the ruleset. A technical evaluation shows that coding agents follow rules more with ZORO than without. A user study demonstrates a change in people's behavior and cognitive strategies when rules are at the forefront of vibe coding. We discuss how making rules active in agentic systems unlocks broader opportunities for human-agent alignment in coding settings and beyond.
title ZORO: Active Rules for Reliable Vibe Coding
topic Human-Computer Interaction
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2604.15625