Artifacts

An artifact is a file or directory produced by a pipeline step and passed to dependent steps. Artifacts are the primary way steps communicate with each other.

output_artifacts:
  - name: analysis
    path: .wave/output/analysis.json
    type: json

Use artifacts when one step needs data from a previous step - analysis results, generated code, or structured output.

Producing Artifacts

Declare what a step produces in output_artifacts:

steps:
  - id: analyze
    persona: navigator
    exec:
      type: prompt
      source: "Analyze the codebase"
    output_artifacts:
      - name: analysis
        path: .wave/output/analysis.json
        type: json
      - name: files
        path: .wave/output/files.md
        type: markdown

Consuming Artifacts

Inject artifacts from previous steps using inject_artifacts:

steps:
  - id: implement
    persona: craftsman
    dependencies: [analyze]
    memory:
      strategy: fresh
      inject_artifacts:
        - step: analyze
          artifact: analysis
          as: context
    exec:
      type: prompt
      source: "Implement based on the analysis"

The artifact is copied into the step's workspace at .wave/artifacts/context.

Artifact Types

Type	Description
json	Structured JSON data
markdown	Documentation or analysis
file	Any single file
directory	Folder with multiple files

Complete Example

A two-step pipeline with artifact passing:

kind: WavePipeline
metadata:
  name: analyze-implement
steps:
  - id: analyze
    persona: navigator
    exec:
      type: prompt
      source: "Analyze: {{ input }}"
    output_artifacts:
      - name: report
        path: .wave/output/report.json

  - id: implement
    persona: craftsman
    dependencies: [analyze]
    memory:
      strategy: fresh
      inject_artifacts:
        - step: analyze
          artifact: report
          as: analysis
    exec:
      type: prompt
      source: "Implement based on analysis"

Viewing Artifacts

List artifacts from a pipeline run:

wave artifacts run-abc123

Output:

STEP      ARTIFACT      TYPE    PATH
analyze   report        json    .wave/workspaces/.../.wave/output/report.json

Next Steps

• Pipelines - Build multi-step workflows
• Contracts - Validate artifact content
• Pipelines - How artifacts flow between steps