Getting started

From zero to a running multi-agent session in five minutes.

Prerequisites

You need:

That's it. initech is a single binary. No Go toolchain, no Node, no Docker.

01 Install
$ curl -fsSL https://initech.sh/install.sh | bash

On macOS this installs via Homebrew. On Linux it downloads the binary to ~/.local/bin.

Alternatively:

$ brew tap nmelo/tap && brew install initech
02 Verify the installation
$ initech doctor

  Prerequisites
  ok  initech v1.3.0
  ok  claude (Claude Code)
  ok  git 2.44.0
  ok  Terminal: 212x56 (meets 80x24 minimum)

  All checks passed.

initech doctor checks that all prerequisites are installed and your terminal is large enough. Fix anything it flags before continuing.

03 Bootstrap a project
$ mkdir myproject && cd myproject
$ initech init

  Project name [myproject]: 
  Source repo URL (blank to skip): github.com:you/myproject.git

  Select agents for myproject

    COORDINATORS
    [x] super

    ENGINEERS
    [x] eng1
    [x] eng2
    [ ] eng3

    QUALITY
    [x] qa1
    [ ] qa2

    PRODUCT
    [x] pm
    [ ] pmm

    SHIPPING
    [x] shipper

    SPECIALISTS
    [ ] arch   [ ] sec   [ ] writer   [ ] ops   [ ] growth

  Created: initech.yaml
  Created: 6 agent workspaces (super, eng1, eng2, qa1, pm, shipper)
  Created: docs/ (prd.md, spec.md, systemdesign.md, roadmap.md)
  Initialized git repository

The interactive selector lets you pick which agents to run. Use arrow keys to navigate, space to toggle, enter to confirm. Start with the defaults if you're unsure.

This creates:

  • initech.yaml with your project config
  • A workspace directory per agent, each with a CLAUDE.md tailored to the role
  • Git submodules for agents that need source access (eng, qa, shipper)
  • docs/ with project document templates
04 Launch the TUI
$ initech

This opens the TUI. Every agent gets its own pane in a grid layout. The grid auto-sizes based on how many agents you selected. Each pane runs Claude Code with the role's CLAUDE.md loaded.

You'll see pane title bars with agent names and activity dots: green = agent is working, gray = idle.

Navigate between panes with Alt+Left / Alt+Right. The focused pane has a blue title bar.

05 Send a message to an agent
$ initech send eng1 "review the README and fix any typos"

This injects text directly into eng1's terminal and presses Enter. The message is delivered synchronously with a guarantee: if initech send returns, eng1 received it.

You can send from any terminal, not just the TUI. Open a separate terminal window and run the command above while the TUI is running.

06 Check on an agent
$ initech peek eng1 -n 20

  I'll review the README now and fix any typos I find.

  Let me start by reading the file...
  [reads README.md]
  ...

initech peek reads an agent's terminal output without sending anything. The -n 20 flag limits output to the last 20 lines.

To check all agents at once:

$ initech patrol
07 Check status
$ initech status

  AGENT     STATE    BEAD
  super     idle
  eng1      active
  eng2      idle
  qa1       idle
  pm        idle
  shipper   idle

A quick table showing each agent's activity state. No need to peek into individual panes to see who's working.

08 Shut down
$ initech down

Gracefully stops all agents and closes the TUI. Agent conversation state is saved in .claude/ directories, so the next time you run initech, agents can resume where they left off.

You can also quit from inside the TUI with Alt+q or the command modal: press ` then type quit.

What's next

You have a running session. From here:

Last updated: April 2026