AST Code Skeletonization (Signature-Only Context Ingestion)

Overview

When an autonomous coding assistant needs to understand a repository's architecture, dependencies, or available APIs, ingesting full implementation files burns tens of thousands of tokens on internal loops, private variable assignments, and boilerplate logic.

The AST Code Skeletonization Protocol parses source code into an Abstract Syntax Tree and strips all function and method bodies - retaining only imports, type definitions, interface contracts, class signatures, and exported method headers.

This generates an ultra-high-density structural map that reduces context token consumption by 80% to 90% while preserving 100% of the API surface.

Full File vs. Skeletonized Signature Map