Create a project

Start a new project that has Xaden’s rules, checks and requirements from the first commit. You have a working project at the end of this page.

Before you start

Xaden is installed and xaden version prints a version. If not, see Install Xaden.
You have git, and your assistant (Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Aider or another) is installed.

Create the project

xaden create my-app
cd my-app

xaden create my-app: creates the folder my-app in the current directory, starts a git repository in it and makes the first commit on main. If anything fails, it removes the half-created folder.
cd my-app: moves your terminal into the new project.

Check that it worked:

xaden check

xaden check: runs the project’s checks and ends with a summary. A new project passes, because it has no code yet.

To create the project somewhere else, add the folder: xaden create my-app ~/code/x.

What you got

What	Where
Requirements, personas, security reviews and the rules for your assistant	the folder `xaden/`
The pointer from your assistant’s rule file to those rules	a marked block in `AGENTS.md`
A README, `VERSION` and `CHANGELOG.md`	the project root
A security policy and a threat model to fill in during the kickoff	`SECURITY.md` and `xaden/threat-model.md`
Git hooks that run the checks before each commit	`.git/hooks` of this clone
A CI workflow that runs the same checks	`.github/workflows/xaden.yml`
The pinned Xaden version and the mode of the checks (`strict`)	`xaden/xaden.conf`

Nothing is copied from the Xaden folder into the project. The tooling stays in the installed Xaden, and the project pins the version it uses. See Pin one Xaden version per project.

Claude Code users get CLAUDE.md with the single line @AGENTS.md. xaden create asks when a terminal is attached; --assistants claude answers it in advance; --assistants claude,copilot,vibe,codex also writes the slash commands of GitHub Copilot, Mistral Vibe and Codex CLI.

Set up a stack in one step (autopilot)

If you already know the stack, let Xaden add the recommended checks, hooks and CI as well:

xaden create --autopilot --stack python my-app

xaden create --autopilot --stack python my-app: prints one plan and asks once. Use --stack node for a Node project.

The plan covers the layout above, the stack’s preset (linter, type checker and test configuration), mode strict, hooks, the CI workflow and the first commit. It prints the exact install commands for the development tools, with pinned versions. You run them; Xaden does not. A run ends with a summary of the checks: tools that are not installed yet are reported as skipped, and a run with skipped checks ends with a warning, never a success sign.

Autopilot never pushes, publishes or downloads anything, and a package added later needs its own approval. A folder that already holds code, a build file or history stops with a pointer to Add Xaden to a repository.

Keep the old layout

xaden create --classic my-app creates a project that keeps its own copy of the scripts, prompts and guides, with Claude Code slash commands. You update it with xaden update (see Update a classic project). New work should use the default layout.

Kick off with your assistant.