An open source experiment: OSS as a set of agent prompts, not code

Shifted is a desktop app that keeps several Gmail accounts in one window. You click an account in a sidebar to switch to it. Each account also has Google Calendar.

This repo does not contain the code of the app. It contains prompts that you give to an AI coding agent, for example Claude Code, Codex, or Cursor. The agent builds the app from the prompts.

Status: the prompts for version 1 are complete. Nobody has built the full app from them yet.

What you need

git.

Node.js 22.12 or newer. Run node --version to see your version.

A coding agent that can read files and run commands in a folder. Examples: Claude Code (claude), Codex CLI (codex), or Cursor in agent mode.

At least one Google account to test with.

Build the app in three steps

Make an empty folder for the app, and start your agent in it:

mkdir -p ~/src/shifted-app cd ~/src/shifted-app claude # or: codex

Paste this message into the agent:

Clone https://github.com/briandilley/shifted.git into a temporary folder outside this one. Then read prompts/build-all.md in that clone and do what it says.

When the agent says that the build is complete, start the app and do the manual tests:

npm run dev

The list of manual tests is in docs/manual-tests.md in the app folder. It starts with the sign-in of your Google accounts.

The agent builds the 10 phases one after the other, with no stops for you. A full build takes hours, not minutes. The agent records its progress in docs/build-progress.md. It stops early in three cases: a tool is missing, a phase still fails after 3 repair attempts, or the spec has a conflict.

A full build runs many commands. If your agent asks before each command, the build waits for you. In Claude Code, answer the first question for each command with the option that does not ask again. Other agents have a similar mode. Use it only in the new app folder.

Start your agent again in the same folder and paste this message:

Read docs/spec/prompts/build-all.md and continue the build.

The agent reads docs/build-progress.md and continues from the first phase that is not done. If the folder has no docs/spec/ yet, the build stopped in phase 00. In that case, paste the message of step 2 again.

On macOS and Linux, passkeys do not work in Shifted. If Google asks for a passkey, click "Try another way". Then use your password and 2-Step Verification. You sign in to each account only once. Shifted keeps the sign-in after a restart.

Prompt 10 makes signed installers and auto-update. It needs an Apple Developer account for macOS and a code-signing certificate for Windows.

Prompt 11 tries Touch ID passkeys on macOS. It needs the signed build of prompt 10.

To run one of them, paste a message like this into your agent in the app folder:

Read docs/spec/prompts/10-installers-and-updates.md and do what it says.

Run the prompts one at a time

With this way, you watch and test each phase before the next one starts.

Clone this repo, and make an empty app folder:

git clone https://github.com/briandilley/shifted.git ~/src/shifted-spec mkdir -p ~/src/shifted-app cd ~/src/shifted-app

Start your agent in the app folder. Paste this message, with the full path of your clone. Some agents do not expand ~, so run echo ~/src/shifted-spec to get the full path.

Read /Users/you/src/shifted-spec/prompts/00-bootstrap.md and do what it says. The spec repo is at /Users/you/src/shifted-spec.

For each next prompt, start a fresh agent session. In Claude Code, type /clear. Paste this message, with the file name of the next prompt:

Read docs/spec/prompts/01-one-account.md and do what it says.

After each prompt, do the manual tests at the end of that prompt. If a test fails, tell the agent which test failed and what you saw. Then let it fix the phase before you go on.

Each phase ends with one commit, for example Phase 01: one account. Run git log --oneline to see the phases that are done.

The app folder has a copy of the spec from the time of prompt 00. To get a newer spec, pull your clone of this repo. Then give the agent this message:

The spec repo at /Users/you/src/shifted-spec changed. Compare it with docs/spec/. Copy the changes into docs/spec/, and list the code changes that the new spec needs. Do not change the code yet.

The prompts

Prompt Phase

prompts/build-all.md The master prompt. It runs the prompts 00 to 09 in order, each in a fresh context, and tracks the progress.

prompts/00-bootstrap.md The code repo, the spec copy, AGENTS.md, Electron with React and TypeScript, Vitest, Playwright, and the fake Google test server.

prompts/01-one-account.md One account: its session, the sign-in window, Gmail, the signed-out state, and sign-in that survives a restart.

prompts/02-many-accounts.md The sidebar, the profile photo with a color ring, reordering, the context menu, the tab bar, and the configuration window.

prompts/03-links.md The link rules, child windows, Calendar links, the default browser, page permissions, and downloads.

prompts/04-unread-badges.md The Atom feed, the choice of feed for each account, the unread badges, and the app badge.

prompts/05-notifications.md New-mail notifications from the feed, Calendar and Chat notifications, the switches, snooze, and quiet hours.

prompts/06-mailto.md The account picker, the new message, and the default email app.

prompts/07-shortcuts-and-background.md Keyboard shortcuts, background loading, hide on close, the tray icon, and open at login.

prompts/08-hardening.md Security, crash and offline states, accessibility, and tests on all three platforms.

prompts/09-release.md A trace of every rule of the spec, one list of manual tests, and the README of the code repo.

prompts/10-installers-and-updates.md Optional: signed installers and auto-update.

prompts/11-touch-id-passkeys.md Optional: Touch ID passkeys on macOS. It starts with a prototype.

How each prompt is built

Each prompt in prompts/ stands on its own. It has these parts: