AiCite

The Specs-Driven AI Development Framework

Open-source specs-driven development (SDD) framework for AI agent alignment. Bootstraps shared documentation and assistant guidance in minutes, creating a version-controlled context for both humans and AI agents.

Tagline: "Align AI agents, unify development teams"

What is AiCite?

AiCite is a powerful yet simple specs-driven development (SDD) framework that helps teams get started with SDD. It creates a shared context for both humans and AI agents by generating:

• Centralized documentation: Requirements, architecture, implementation, and deployment guides in docs/
• AI agent guidance: Configuration for tools like GitHub Copilot, KiloCode, and Cursor IDE (with extensibility for more tools)
• Version-controlled context: All artifacts are local to your repository for full control

Why AiCite?

For Teams Building with AI

Stop wasting time aligning AI agents and human developers. AiCite provides a shared framework that ensures everyone works from the same page.

Key Benefits

For Developers

• Instant consistency: All AI agents (Copilot, KiloCode, Cursor) work from identical documentation
• Faster onboarding: New team members understand the project structure in minutes
• Reduced rework: Clear specs prevent misunderstandings before they happen
• Project tracking: Real-time progress updates through documentation status indicators

For Architects

• Architecture-first mindset: Enforce design documentation before implementation begins
• Living specifications: Documentation evolves with your codebase
• Tool agnostic alignment: Ensure consistency across different AI platforms
• Version-controlled context: All specs and guidance are tracked in your repository

Quick Start

Get started with AiCite in under a minute!

JavaScript/Node.js (npm)

npx aicite@latest setup

Python (uvx/PyPI)

uvx aicite setup

Common Use Cases

Initialize a new project with all features

npx aicite@latest setup

Generate only documentation

npx aicite@latest setup --only docs

Generate documentation and GitHub Copilot guidance

npx aicite@latest setup --copilot

Generate documentation and Cursor IDE guidance

npx aicite@latest setup --cursor

Generate documentation and KiloCode guidance

npx aicite@latest setup --kilocode

Overwrite existing files (use with caution)

npx aicite@latest setup --force

Options

• --force: Overwrite existing generated files
• --only copilot,kilocode,cursor,docs: Generate only selected targets (docs are always included)
• --cursor / --copilot / --kilocode / --docs: Convenience flags for selective generation
• --cursor / --copilot / --kilocode / --docs: Convenience flags for selective generation

What Gets Generated?

Target	Description
docs/	Requirements, architecture, implementation, and deployment guides
copilot	GitHub Copilot agent personas and guidance under .github/
kilocode	KiloCode configuration including .kilocodemodes file and .kilocode/ folder
cursor	Cursor IDE agent configuration under .cursor/
(future)	Support for additional AI tools and agents

Specs-Driven Development

AiCite follows an SDD approach:

1. Define requirements first: Clear, measurable objectives
2. Architect before coding: Design solutions upfront
3. Generate living docs: Specifications evolve with the project
4. Align across tools: AI agents and humans work from the same source of truth

This ensures consistency, reduces rework, and improves collaboration between humans and AI.

User Prompt Examples

Project Tracking Benefits

AiCite's specs-driven approach enables powerful project tracking capabilities by maintaining up-to-date documentation with status indicators. AI agents can analyze these documents to provide real-time progress reports, identify blockers, and track dependencies.

For Architects

Use these prompts to work with AI agents on architectural and project tracking tasks:

I need to define the requirements for a new feature that allows users to export their data. Help me update the requirements document.

We're planning to refactor our authentication system. Can you help me design the new architecture and document the changes?

I want to understand the current architecture of our project. Can you analyze the codebase and update the architecture document?

Generate a project tracking status report based on the current documentation.

What are the current project blockers based on the requirements and architecture documents?

Provide a summary of last week's status and current dependencies from the project documents.

Scan the project and prepare/update all documentation to reflect the current state.

Let's brainstorm solutions for the performance issues mentioned in the architecture document.

For Developers

Use these prompts to work with AI agents on development and project tracking tasks:

I need to implement the user authentication feature. Can you help me understand the requirements and architecture, then guide me through the implementation?

There's a bug in the data export functionality. Can you help me debug it and fix the issue?

I'm refactoring the payment processing code. Can you review my changes and provide feedback on architectural alignment?

What is the high priority task to pick up next based on the requirements document?

Update the development progress status in the implementation document.

Real-World Example

Let's see AiCite in action with a typical project scenario:

1. Project initialization: A developer runs npx aicite@latest setup to create the initial documentation and AI agent guidance.
2. Requirements gathering: The architect uses an AI agent with the prompt: "Help me define the requirements for a user authentication feature" and updates docs/requirements.md.
3. Architecture design: The architect collaborates with an AI agent to design the authentication system and updates docs/architecture.md.
4. Implementation: A developer uses an AI agent with the prompt: "Help me implement the user authentication feature based on the requirements and architecture" to write the code.
5. Progress tracking: The team uses AI agents to generate status reports, identify blockers, and update documentation with real-time progress.
6. Iteration: As the project evolves, the team updates the specifications, and AI agents provide consistent guidance across all tools.

This workflow ensures that everyone is aligned from the start, reduces rework, and improves collaboration between humans and AI.

Why AiCite Stands Out

AiCite solves the biggest challenges of AI-assisted development:

1. AI Agent Alignment

Ensure GitHub Copilot, KiloCode, Cursor, and future AI tools all work from the same specifications

2. Single Source of Truth

Centralized documentation (requirements → architecture → implementation → deployment) that's version-controlled

3. Architecture-First Development

Force best practices by documenting before coding, preventing costly rework later

4. Real-Time Project Tracking

Status indicators in documentation enable AI agents to provide real-time progress reports

5. Minimal Friction

One command setup (npx aicite@latest setup) with safe defaults that won't overwrite your existing work

6. Future-Proof

Extensible framework that will support additional AI tools and workflows as the ecosystem evolves

Contributing

We welcome contributions from the community! AiCite is built with specs-driven development, and we follow these principles in our own work. Here's how you can contribute:

Getting Started

1. Fork the repository
2. Clone your forked repository
3. Set up the development environment (see docs/implementation.md for details)
4. Make your changes
5. Run the tests (see docs/implementation.md for test commands)
6. Submit a pull request

Contribution Guidelines

• Follow the specs-driven development approach
• Keep changes focused on a single issue or feature
• Update documentation to reflect your changes
• Test your changes before submitting a pull request
• Be respectful and inclusive in your interactions with other contributors

Reporting Issues

If you find a bug or have a feature request, please open an issue on GitHub. Include as much information as possible, including steps to reproduce the issue.

License

AiCite is open-source software licensed under the MIT license.