Once a project becomes auto-converging, everything changes.

Before that point, the project will fall apart if you remove the scaffolding.

If you don't tell everyone on the team what part they should build, they won't be able to figure it out.

Without some curation and "scaffolding" the activity of the team will just randomize; everyone's best efforts will pull in random directions, pulling it apart.

Once it gets to the point where it's clearly working and valuable, it becomes auto-catalyzing.

Past that point, the project has its own internal, auto-strengthening momentum.

It becomes obvious what incremental work to do to make the project better at what it already does.

At this point it's free-standing, it's alive.

It can stand under its own weight and grow.

At that point, even if you tried to diverge it it would be hard to; it has its own internal momentum and all the swarming energy around it from engineers and users gives it more momentum.