New Atomic Agents Project
Scaffold a fresh Atomic Agents project. The result is a single-package Python project with one working agent, one schema pair, a provider-wrapped client, and a runnable main.py.
This skill is opinionated. Produce a complete, tested skeleton the user can run immediately.
Phase 1 — Interrogate
Ask these questions in one message, not one-at-a-time. Skip any the user already answered (including via $ARGUMENTS).
- Project name — used as both directory name and package name. Default from
$ARGUMENTSif provided. Normalize tokebab-casefor the directory andsnake_casefor the package. - LLM provider — OpenAI / Anthropic / Groq / Ollama / Gemini / OpenRouter / MiniMax. Default: OpenAI.
- Agent type — a rough one-liner. Shapes the default
SystemPromptGeneratorcontent and the starter schema pair. Defaults to a generic chat agent. - Tooling —
uv(default, because the repo uses uv) orpip + venv.
Do not ask about project layout, Python version, or dependency list. Pick them.
Phase 2 — Confirm the plan
State the plan in one short block and wait for a yes. Include:
- Directory:
<project-name>/ - Package:
<project_name>/ - Python:
>=3.12(Atomic Agents uses PEP 695 generics) - Dependencies:
atomic-agents>=2.7,instructor[<provider-extra>]>=1.14,python-dotenv,rich - Dev dependencies:
pytest,pytest-asyncio,ruff - First agent:
<agent-type>— usesBasicChatInputSchema/BasicChatOutputSchemaunless the agent type calls for custom schemas - Default model for the chosen provider (see
framework/references/providers.md) - Entry point:
main.pywith a REPL
Phase 3 — Scaffold
Create files in this order. Verify each step before proceeding.
Directory and package
<project-name>/
├── pyproject.toml
├── .env.example
├── .gitignore
├── README.md
├── AGENTS.md
├── CLAUDE.md
└── <project_name>/
├── __init__.py
└── main.py
pyproject.toml
Use the template from framework/references/project-structure.md, substituting the chosen provider extra and project name.
.env.example
Include the provider's API-key variable with a placeholder. Never the real key.
.gitignore
Use the template from framework/references/project-structure.md.
<project_name>/main.py
Produce a runnable REPL. Load .env, instantiate the provider client per framework/references/providers.md, build an agent, wire a ChatHistory with a seed assistant message, loop on console.input(...).
For the agent itself, follow the workflow from the atomic-agents:create-atomic-agent skill — same canonical imports, same per-provider mode matrix, same SystemPromptGenerator shape.
When a custom agent type was requested, build custom InputSchema / OutputSchema subclasses with field description= populated, following the atomic-agents:create-atomic-schema skill. Otherwise use BasicChatInputSchema / BasicChatOutputSchema.
Always use the canonical imports:
from atomic_agents import (
AtomicAgent, AgentConfig,
BasicChatInputSchema, BasicChatOutputSchema,
)
from atomic_agents.context import ChatHistory, SystemPromptGenerator
from instructor import Mode
Per-provider AgentConfig knobs — match the Instructor factory mode on AgentConfig.mode:
- OpenAI: defaults work. Omit
mode(or setMode.TOOLS). - Anthropic:
mode=Mode.TOOLS; includemax_tokensinmodel_api_parameters. - Groq / Ollama / MiniMax:
mode=Mode.JSON(Instructor factory also usesMode.JSON). - Gemini:
assistant_role="model"andmode=Mode.GENAI_TOOLS(Instructor factory usesMode.GENAI_TOOLS). - OpenRouter:
mode=Mode.TOOLS.
README.md
Short. Include: what the project is, how to install (uv sync or pip install -e .[dev]), how to set the API key (cp .env.example .env and edit), how to run (uv run python -m <project_name>.main or equivalent).
AGENTS.md and CLAUDE.md
Every scaffolded project ships agent instructions so any coding assistant (Cursor, Codex, Copilot, Gemini CLI, ...) knows the framework conventions from the first commit. CLAUDE.md contains exactly one line — @AGENTS.md — so Claude Code reads the same file without duplication.
AGENTS.md template (substitute project specifics):
# <Project Name>
<One-line description from the agent-type answer.>
Built with [Atomic Agents](https://github.com/eigenwise/atomic-agents) — a schema-driven
framework on Instructor + Pydantic. Docs for LLMs:
https://eigenwise.github.io/atomic-agents/llms.txt
## Framework conventions
- Import from the top-level package: `from atomic_agents import AtomicAgent, AgentConfig,
BaseIOSchema, BaseTool`; context pieces from `atomic_agents.context`.
- Agents are `AtomicAgent[InputSchema, OutputSchema](config=AgentConfig(...))` — the type
parameters carry runtime information, keep them accurate.
- The LLM client must be wrapped with Instructor before it goes into `AgentConfig.client`.
- Every `BaseIOSchema` subclass needs a non-empty docstring and `Field(..., description=...)`
on each field — both flow into the LLM prompt.
- Provider knobs (`temperature`, `max_tokens`, ...) go in `AgentConfig.model_api_parameters`.
- Provider: <chosen provider>. <Provider-specific line from the matrix below, if any.>
## Commands
- Install: `uv sync` (or the pip equivalent chosen at scaffold time)
- Run: `uv run python -m <project_name>.main`
- Test: `uv run pytest`
Provider-specific lines for the template: Anthropic → "Requires max_tokens in model_api_parameters; mode=Mode.TOOLS." Gemini → "assistant_role='model' and mode=Mode.GENAI_TOOLS." Groq/Ollama/MiniMax → "mode=Mode.JSON on both the Instructor factory and AgentConfig." OpenAI/OpenRouter → omit.
Phase 4 — Install and smoke-test
Execute the install step:
- uv:
uv sync - pip:
python -m venv .venv && .venv/bin/pip install -e ".[dev]"(Windows:.venv\Scripts\pip)
Verify imports without a live API key:
uv run python -c "from <project_name>.main import agent; print('ok')"
If that works, the scaffold is sound. Tell the user to drop their key into .env and run the REPL.
Phase 5 — Hand off
After scaffolding, tell the user:
- How to set their key (
cp .env.example .env). - How to run (
uv run python -m <project_name>.main). - Next steps, picked from:
- Replace the starter schemas with domain-specific ones — use the
atomic-agents:create-atomic-schemaskill. - Add another agent — use the
atomic-agents:create-atomic-agentskill. - Add a tool — use the
atomic-agents:create-atomic-toolskill. - Add a context provider (time, user, RAG, session) — use the
atomic-agents:create-atomic-context-providerskill. - Split into multiple agents — see
framework/references/orchestration.md.
- Replace the starter schemas with domain-specific ones — use the
- A pointer to
framework(auto-triggered) andreview(auto-triggered before commit).
Constraints
- Never commit
.env. Only.env.example. - Never install anything globally. Use the project venv.
- Never pick an old model. Default to current generation: OpenAI
gpt-5-mini, Anthropicclaude-haiku-4-5, Groqllama-3.3-70b-versatile, Ollamallama3.1, Geminigemini-2.5-flash. - Never hand-roll what
framework/references/project-structure.mdalready templates.