Starter Kits
Starter kits are pre-configured project templates that protoLabs Studio uses to bootstrap new projects. Each kit ships with a ready-to-run project scaffold, a .automaker/ agent configuration directory, and a board pre-loaded with initial features.
This page covers what starter kits are, how to use them, and what each one includes.
Available kits
| Kit | Source | Stack | Use case |
|---|---|---|---|
| Documentation site | scaffold | VitePress | Docs sites, API references, knowledge bases |
| Portfolio / marketing site | scaffold | Astro + React 19 + Tailwind CSS 4 | Personal sites, marketing pages, project showcases |
| Landing page | scaffold | Astro + Tailwind CSS 4 + composable sections | Product landing pages, waitlist pages |
| AI agent app | scaffold | Node.js + React 19 + Anthropic SDK | Chat apps, tool-using agents, AI prototypes |
| Browser extension | clone | WXT + React 19 + TypeScript | Chrome + Firefox extensions (Manifest V3) |
| General project | scaffold | Blank .automaker/ structure | Bring-your-own codebase |
Scaffold a starter
Via the CLI:
npx create-protolabSelect a kit type when prompted. The CLI copies the starter into the current directory, substitutes your project name into package.json and config files, and creates the initial board features.
Via the UI:
Open the New Project dialog in protoLabs Studio. Select a template from the dropdown. The UI calls the same scaffold endpoint as the CLI and opens the new project automatically.
What the scaffold produces
Every scaffold creates:
- A ready-to-run project directory with all source files and config
.automaker/CONTEXT.md— loaded into every agent prompt for this project.automaker/coding-rules.md— stack-specific conventions.github/workflows/ci.yml— CI pipeline (build, format, lint, deploy)- Initial board features (configure CI, write README, add first content, etc.)
Run npm install inside the scaffolded directory before starting the dev server.
Kit details
Documentation site
Source: scaffold (local copy) Kit type: docsStack: VitePress, Markdown, Cloudflare Pages
Creates a VitePress documentation site with Diataxis sidebar structure and built-in local search. The .automaker/ config includes context tuned for docs writing: writing style conventions, page structure patterns, and frontmatter rules.
See Documentation site starter for a full walkthrough.
Portfolio / marketing site
Source: scaffold (local copy) Kit type: portfolioStack: Astro 5, React 19, Tailwind CSS 4, Content Collections, View Transitions
Creates a portfolio site with React islands for interactive sections (project grid, contact form), Content Collections for blog posts and project data, and an RSS feed. Includes SEO meta tags, Open Graph, and Twitter Cards.
See Portfolio site starter for a full walkthrough.
Landing page
Source: scaffold (local copy) Kit type: landing-pageStack: Astro 5, Tailwind CSS 4, CSS custom property tokens
Creates a dark-themed product landing page with eight composable sections: Hero, Stats bar, Feature grid, Steps, Pricing, Testimonials, FAQ, and CTA. All section content is driven by JSON files in Astro Content Collections. Scroll-triggered fade-in animations are included via an IntersectionObserver utility. Rebranding requires changing six CSS custom property values.
See Landing page starter for a full walkthrough.
AI agent app
Source: scaffold (local copy) Kit type: ai-agent-appStack: Node.js, Express, React 19, Anthropic SDK, Vercel AI SDK, Zod
Creates a three-package npm monorepo for building AI agent apps. The packages/server package runs an Express server with a server-side agentic loop that detects tool-use blocks, executes registered tools, and streams results back. The packages/ui package provides a streaming chat UI with useChat. The packages/tools package holds shared tool definitions that compile to MCP, LangGraph, or Express adapters via the defineSharedTool pattern.
See AI agent app starter for a full walkthrough.
Browser extension
Source: clone (GitHub repository) Kit type: extensionStack: WXT, React 19, TypeScript, Tailwind CSS 4, Vitest, Playwright, web-ext
Cloned from https://github.com/protoLabsAI/browser-extension-template. Because browser extension tooling requires native build scripts, this kit is provisioned via git clone rather than local file copy. The repository includes a background service worker, content script scaffold, popup and options pages, and CI pipelines for both the Chrome Web Store and Firefox AMO.
General project
Source: scaffold (local copy) Kit type: generalStack: none (blank)
Creates only the .automaker/ directory structure: settings.json, categories.json, and a placeholder app_spec.txt. Use this when you want to add protoLabs Studio to an existing project or a project with a stack not covered by the other kits.
The agent analyzes your codebase on the first run and populates app_spec.txt with what it finds.
Scaffold vs clone
| Scaffold | Clone | |
|---|---|---|
| How it works | Files copied from @protolabsai/templates package | git clone from GitHub |
| Offline support | Yes | No — requires network access |
| Project name substitution | Automatic (package.json, config files) | Manual after clone |
| Used by | docs, portfolio, landing-page, ai-agent-app, general | browser-extension |