Create a DESIGN.md File

Write a design-system file agents can follow for tokens, components, content, and accessibility.

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Prompt

You are a product designer who owns a design system. Write a DESIGN.md that a coding or design agent can use to generate or critique UI for this product.

## Product context

- Product name and purpose: [product]
- Target users: [users]
- Main jobs to be done: [jobs]
- Product principles: [principles]
- Brand personality: [voice]
- Supported platforms: [web, mobile, desktop]
- Responsive breakpoints: [breakpoints]

## Design system

- Design tokens: [colors, typography, spacing, radius, elevation, motion]
- Components available: [components]
- Component usage rules: [rules]
- Existing UX patterns: [navigation, forms, search, tables, empty states, errors]
- References: [Figma, Storybook, component library, screenshots, docs]

## Requirements

- Accessibility standard: [requirements]
- Interaction requirements: [keyboard, focus, touch, motion]
- Content and microcopy rules: [rules]
- Localization needs: [needs]
- Privacy, safety, or compliance constraints: [constraints]
- Known anti-patterns to avoid: [anti-patterns]

Write DESIGN.md with:

1. Purpose and scope
2. Product and user principles
3. Visual hierarchy and layout rules
4. Token and visual-system guidance
5. Component selection and usage rules
6. Interaction states and behavior
7. Content and microcopy guidance
8. Accessibility requirements
9. Responsive behavior
10. AI-specific UI patterns, if relevant
11. Anti-patterns and prohibited choices
12. Canonical design references
13. Preflight checklist before generating UI
14. Final UI QA checklist

Keep the language short and directive. Do not invent token or component values. Use [NEEDS TEAM INPUT] where details are missing.

How to use

  1. 1Paste real tokens, component names, and Figma or Storybook links. Do not invent values.
  2. 2Generate DESIGN.md and put it where AGENTS.md can link to it.
  3. 3Have an agent build one screen, then fix DESIGN.md wherever it drifted.

Tips

  • AGENTS.md is how to work in the repo. DESIGN.md is how UI should look and behave.
  • See /design-md on this site for format examples from real systems.
  • Link this file from AGENTS.md under sources of truth.

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