nWave provides AI agents designed to guide users from an initial idea to functional code, maintaining human control throughout the development process. It targets developers and engineers seeking to leverage AI for code generation while ensuring quality and adherence to specifications. The primary benefit is an accelerated development cycle with built-in quality assurance mechanisms, reducing manual effort in requirements gathering, design, testing, and implementation.

How It Works

nWave employs a structured, multi-agent approach organized into six "waves": Discover, Discuss, Design, DevOps, Distill, and Deliver. Each wave is handled by specialized AI agents that produce artifacts (e.g., requirements, architecture diagrams, tests, code) which are then reviewed and approved by the user before the next wave commences. This ensures the machine never runs unsupervised end-to-end. A core component is the DES (Development Environment Safety) layer, which enforces Test-Driven Development (TDD) discipline, prevents accidental code edits during active agent work, and performs background maintenance tasks, acting as a quality enforcement and safety net.

Quick Start & Requirements

• Primary Install:
  • Plugin (Recommended): Within Claude Code, run /plugin marketplace add nwave-ai/nwave followed by /plugin install nw@nwave-marketplace. Restart Claude Code and use /nw: commands.
  • CLI (Alternative): Use pipx install nwave-ai and then nwave-ai install.
• Prerequisites: Python 3.10+ is required due to its use of match/case and union type syntax. Windows users need WSL (wsl --install) for CLI installation.
• OpenCode Support: Requires npm install -g opencode-ai, pipx install nwave-ai, specific configuration (~/.config/opencode/opencode.json), and an OPENAI_API_KEY.
• Links: Installation Guide, Your First Feature tutorial.

Highlighted Details

• Core Workflow: A streamlined four-command process: /nw:discuss for requirements, /nw:design for architecture, /nw:distill for acceptance tests, and /nw:deliver for TDD implementation.
• Rigor Control: The /nw:rigor command allows users to adjust the depth of quality practices (e.g., TDD phases, reviewer involvement, mutation testing targets) based on the task's criticality, offering profiles like 'lean', 'standard', 'thorough', and 'exhaustive'.
• DES Enforcement: The DES layer actively monitors agent invocations to enforce TDD, protect code integrity, and manage audit logs, providing guidance rather than blocking work.
• Agent Ecosystem: Utilizes 23 agents, including 6 wave agents and 11 peer reviewers, to cover the full development lifecycle.

Maintenance & Community

nWave checks for updates automatically within Claude Code. Plugin updates can be immediate via a self-hosted marketplace or delayed through Anthropic's official directory. CLI updates are managed via pipx upgrade nwave-ai. Community support and bug reporting are available through Discord and GitHub Issues.

Licensing & Compatibility

The project is licensed under the MIT license, permitting broad use and modification. While primarily designed for Claude Code, it offers compatibility with OpenCode, though with approximately 67% feature parity.

Limitations & Caveats

The full feature set and seamless integration are optimized for Claude Code; OpenCode support is functional but may have limitations. The system mandates human review and approval at each development stage, preventing fully autonomous end-to-end execution. Windows users must utilize WSL for the CLI installation.