Tool Compatibility

April 1, 2026 · View on GitHub

GAAI works with any AI coding tool that can read files. This document covers setup for the tools with dedicated adapters. All others work via AGENTS.md or direct file access.

Compatibility Matrix

Tool	Slash commands	Rules auto-loading	SKILL.md discovery	Adapter
Claude Code	✅ Native	Via `CLAUDE.md`	✅ Auto-scan	`CLAUDE.md` + `.claude/commands/`
OpenCode	❌	Via `AGENTS.md`	Manual	`AGENTS.md`
Codex CLI	❌	Via `AGENTS.md`	Manual	`AGENTS.md`
Gemini CLI	❌	Via `AGENTS.md`	Manual	`AGENTS.md`
Antigravity	❌	Via `AGENTS.md`	Manual	`AGENTS.md`
Cursor	❌	Via `.mdc` always-active	Via `.mdc` reference	`.cursor/rules/*.mdc`
Windsurf	❌	Via `AGENTS.md`	Manual	`AGENTS.md`
Any other	❌	Manual	Manual	Read `.gaai/README.md` directly

Claude Code has the deepest integration. All other tools provide full GAAI capability for Discovery and governance via manual activation — the difference is convenience.

Delivery Daemon: Regardless of which tool you use for Discovery, the Delivery Daemon requires Claude Code CLI (claude in PATH) as a runtime dependency. Discovery and governance work with any tool in the matrix above; autonomous delivery requires Claude Code CLI.

Claude Code

The best-supported tool. Slash commands provide one-keystroke agent activation.

Setup

After running the installer:

CLAUDE.md is deployed to your project root — Claude Code loads it automatically
.claude/commands/ contains the slash command definitions

Slash commands

Command	Action
`/gaai-bootstrap`	Run Bootstrap Agent on existing codebase
`/gaai-discover`	Activate Discovery Agent
`/gaai-deliver`	Run Delivery Loop
`/gaai-status`	Show project status summary
`/gaai-update`	Update framework core or switch AI tool adapter

CLAUDE.md

The deployed CLAUDE.md is a thin adapter that:

Establishes agent identity and the 5 operating rules
References .gaai/ as the canonical source (not duplicating content)
Lists available slash commands

To customize: edit CLAUDE.md in your project root. The framework source is at .gaai/core/compat/claude-code.md.

Manual activation (without slash commands)

"Read .gaai/core/agents/discovery.agent.md. I want to build [idea]."
"Read .gaai/core/agents/delivery.agent.md and .gaai/core/workflows/delivery-loop.workflow.md. Execute the next ready backlog item."

OpenCode, Codex CLI, Gemini CLI, Antigravity

These tools use AGENTS.md for context loading. Setup is identical across all of them.

Setup

After running the installer (select "Other" at the tool prompt):

AGENTS.md is deployed to your project root

Or manually: copy .gaai/core/compat/windsurf.md to AGENTS.md in your project root.

Activating agents

Discovery:

"Read .gaai/core/agents/discovery.agent.md. I want to build [idea]."

Delivery:

"Read .gaai/core/agents/delivery.agent.md and .gaai/core/workflows/delivery-loop.workflow.md. Execute the next ready backlog item."

Bootstrap:

"Read .gaai/core/agents/bootstrap.agent.md, then follow .gaai/core/workflows/context-bootstrap.workflow.md."

Status:

"Read .gaai/project/contexts/backlog/active.backlog.yaml and give me a summary."

All memory, rules, backlog, and artefact files are read directly from .gaai/. No additional setup required.

Cursor

Setup uses .mdc rules files. No slash commands.

Setup

After running the installer:

.cursor/rules/gaai.mdc is deployed with alwaysApply: true

What the .mdc file does

The gaai.mdc file (from .gaai/core/compat/cursor.mdc):

Establishes agent identity at session start
Lists the 5 operating rules
References key .gaai/ paths
Provides invocation prompt templates for each agent

Activating agents in Cursor

Discovery:

"Read .gaai/core/agents/discovery.agent.md. I want to build [idea]."

Delivery:

"Read .gaai/core/agents/delivery.agent.md and .gaai/core/workflows/delivery-loop.workflow.md. Execute the next ready backlog item."

Bootstrap:

"Read .gaai/core/agents/bootstrap.agent.md, then follow .gaai/core/workflows/context-bootstrap.workflow.md."

Customizing rules in Cursor

Add additional .mdc files to .cursor/rules/ for project-specific rules. Cursor loads all .mdc files with alwaysApply: true at session start.

Windsurf

Setup uses AGENTS.md. No slash commands.

Setup

After running the installer:

AGENTS.md is deployed to your project root

What AGENTS.md does

The AGENTS.md file (from .gaai/core/compat/windsurf.md):

Establishes agent roles
Lists the 5 operating rules
Provides key paths and manual invocation templates

Activating agents in Windsurf

Same manual prompt format as Cursor above.

Other Tools (VS Code, Neovim, etc.)

For any tool that supports reading project files:

Copy the relevant content from .gaai/core/compat/claude-code.md or .gaai/core/compat/windsurf.md as a system prompt or instructions file for your tool
Use manual prompts to activate agents

The framework's governance files are the system — they work with any AI tool for Discovery and governance. The compat adapters only make activation more convenient. The one exception: the Delivery Daemon requires Claude Code CLI (claude in PATH) as a runtime dependency for autonomous delivery.

Tool Compatibility: 3-Tier Model

GAAI tool compatibility follows a 3-tier model:

Tier	Mode	Requirement
1	Discovery / governance (interactive)	Any AI coding tool or MCP client
2	Delivery interactive (manual)	Any AI coding tool or MCP client
3	Delivery autonomous (daemon)	Claude Code CLI (`claude` in PATH)

Discovery and governance are tool-agnostic. GAAI's governance is in the files. Changing AI tools for Discovery or governance requires only:

Deploying the right compat adapter (the installer handles this)
Using the appropriate activation method (slash command vs manual prompt)

All memory, rules, backlog, and artefacts remain unchanged.

Autonomous delivery requires Claude Code CLI. The Delivery Daemon runs claude -p as a background OS process. This is a runtime dependency — not a tool choice. You can use any AI tool for Discovery and still use autonomous delivery, as long as Claude Code CLI is installed locally. This applies to both GAAI OSS and GAAI Cloud users.

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