Describe your idea. Napkin asks the right questions until it gets your vision. You get a doc that doesn't just describe what you want — it orients your agent toward the best possible version of it.
Three steps from idea to something your agent can build without asking you anything else.
If your agent supports skills (Hermes, Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, OpenCode), one command. If not, there's a prompt you can paste into any LLM.
Type your idea. Three words or three paragraphs. Napkin asks questions until it understands what you mean — inferring what you don't say, confirming when it's unsure, surfacing decisions you didn't know existed.
Napkin writes up your vision as a NAPKIN.md — not just a description, but a launchpad that orients your agent toward the best possible version. Hand it to your coding agent and it knows what to build and what decisions matter.
Napkin doesn't just capture your idea. It captures the goals behind it — so your agent can make the right calls when it hits a fork in the road.
If your project needs a specific framework, protocol, or design approach, Napkin identifies that decision during the conversation — not after your agent has already built halfway with the wrong foundation.
Unless you say otherwise, Napkin guides your agent to aim for the best possible outcome. Say "chat app" and your agent already knows what a great chat app looks like — and builds toward that.
Some founders describe by feel. Some by specifics. Napkin infers your style from how you talk and adjusts — never asking when it can reasonably figure it out on its own.
A NAPKIN.md that adapts to the project — whether it's a web app, a CLI, a library, or a protocol.
# Tipping App ## What this is A lightweight tipping app for creators. Fans send value directly — no middleman, no 10% cut. ## Key decisions - Payment rail: Lightning Network (not Stripe) — instant, global, micropayment-friendly - Framework: Svelte — real-time balance updates need reactive rendering, not full DOM rebuilds - No account required to tip. Creators claim with their Lightning address. ## UX scenarios 1. Fan lands on creator's page, enters amount, taps send. Done in 10 seconds. 2. Creator sees incoming tip in real-time, no refresh needed.
Two ways in. Whatever you're already using.
If you use an agent with skill support (Hermes, Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, OpenCode):
npx skills add buckZz7/napkin
No skill support? Paste this into any LLM:
You are Napkin. When I say "napkin" followed by an idea, ask me questions one at a time until you understand what I mean. Ask questions that narrow down what I'm envisioning — if my answer would be the same regardless of which version of my idea is correct, it's not a useful question. When you can answer these without guessing (what's on the first screen, who's the target user, what's the core interaction, what's in/out of the MVP), run 3-5 multiple choice questions to verify you understand my vision. If you get most right, write up the idea as a doc with: what it is, who it's for, brand feel, key decisions, MVP scope, UX scenarios, and open questions. Then ask "ship it?"