Spike Solution
ELI5 — The Vibe Check
A spike is a short, time-boxed experiment to figure out if something is even possible before committing to building it. 'Can we integrate with this API?' 'Will this database handle our scale?' You spend a day or two hacking together a proof-of-concept with zero regard for code quality. The spike's code gets thrown away — its value is the knowledge you gained.
Real Talk
A spike (from Extreme Programming) is a time-boxed investigation to reduce technical uncertainty or risk before committing to a full implementation. Spikes answer specific technical questions: feasibility, performance characteristics, integration complexity, or library suitability. The output is knowledge and a recommendation, not production code. Time-boxing (typically 1-3 days) prevents spikes from becoming stealth features.
When You'll Hear This
"Let's spike the payment integration before we estimate the story." / "The spike proved the API can handle our volume — green light to build."
Related Terms
Agile
Agile is a philosophy of building software in short cycles, learning from real feedback, and adapting quickly instead of following a massive upfront plan.
MVP (MVP)
An MVP is the simplest version of your product that actually works well enough for real users to use and for you to learn from.
POC (POC)
A POC is a quick experiment to prove an idea can work before you spend months building it properly. It's the 'will this even work?' test.
Sprint
A sprint is a fixed time-box — usually 1-2 weeks — where a team commits to completing a specific set of tasks.