Summary
Autobahn is the on-ramp for a new data creator to their first Gold
dataset. Four weeks, guided, repeatable. The program is the paved
path; Causeway is the road.
Shape of the program
- Week 1 — Intake. The creator's first dataset arrives on
Bronze, auto-contracted from existing schema. They meet their
steward.
- Week 2 — Silver. The contract is hardened with freshness +
retention + policy. The dataset ships with lineage upstream.
- Week 3 — Review. A peer steward reviews the contract PR-style.
No separate governance ticket.
- Week 4 — Gold. Promotion gates are green; the dataset lights
up in the catalog with its contract public.
Why committed, not discussion
This one left discussion in Feb. The roadmap item
(usability#autobahn-onramp) has delivery dates; the RFD captures
the guarantee we're committing to creators.
Non-goals
- Rewriting governance policy. RFD 0034 covers RAG classification;
this RFD assumes it.
- Replacing existing stewardship. Autobahn is a program for new
creators; existing stewards keep their domains.