Getting Started

Get HELIX installed and running your first supervised build session.

DDx and HELIX

HELIX is built on DDx (Document-Driven Development eXperience), a platform for AI-assisted development. DDx provides the foundation: a document library for managing governing artifacts like specs and designs, a work tracker (ddx bead) for issue management with dependencies and claims, an agent harness (ddx agent) for dispatching AI models with token tracking, and an execution engine (ddx exec) for recording structured evidence of what happened.

HELIX adds the methodology on top — the development phases (Frame → Design → Test → Build → Deploy → Iterate), the authority order that resolves conflicts between artifacts, the bounded execution loop that decides what to do next, and the skills that turn all of this into agent instructions. You install DDx first, then install HELIX as a DDx package.

Install

First, install DDx:

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/DocumentDrivenDX/ddx/main/install.sh | bash

Then install HELIX:

ddx install helix

You’ll also need Claude Code (or another agent CLI like codex), plus bash and git.

Start Building

Open Claude Code in your project directory and describe what you want to build:

> I want to build a REST API for managing bookmarks. Use /helix-frame to get started.

Claude loads the HELIX skills automatically and begins the structured workflow — creating a product vision, PRD, and feature specs based on your description. The governing artifacts it creates will drive everything downstream.

Understand the Artifact Hierarchy

After framing, your project has governing artifacts at different zoom levels:

Product Vision          "What is this and why?"
  └── PRD               "What must it do?"
       └── Feature Spec  "What exactly does this feature do?"
            └── Bead     "One unit of work to implement it"

Higher levels govern lower levels. If a feature spec contradicts the PRD, the PRD wins. HELIX enforces this automatically — you don’t need to remember the hierarchy, but understanding it helps you steer effectively.

Add Work to the Tracker

HELIX works from a tracker queue. After framing, you can add specific work items:

> /helix-triage "Add user authentication with OAuth"

This creates a well-structured bead with acceptance criteria, spec references, and a context digest that tells the implementing agent everything it needs to know. You can also add beads directly:

ddx bead create "Add OAuth login flow" --type task \
  --labels helix,phase:build --set spec-id=FEAT-001 \
  --acceptance "OAuth login redirects to provider and returns a session token"

Run the Autopilot

Once framing is complete and beads exist, start the autopilot:

> /helix-run

HELIX takes over from here. It reads the governing artifacts, designs the solution, writes failing tests, implements the code to make them pass, reviews the work for bugs, and iterates — stopping only when human judgment is needed or the work queue is empty.

Interactive Commands

Inside a Claude Code session, HELIX skills are available as slash commands. You can invoke them at any time to steer the work:

You can also just describe what you want in natural language — Claude understands HELIX context and will invoke the right skills:

> The auth module needs OAuth support. Thread that through the specs and design.
> Review the last commit for security issues.
> What should we work on next?

Background Execution (CLI)

For long-running work, CI integration, or scripting, the same commands are available as a shell CLI:

helix start                           # Daemon mode with PID file
helix status                          # Check progress
helix stop                            # Stop the daemon

Or run directly:

helix run --agent claude --summary    # Background autopilot with concise output
helix run --max-cycles 10             # Stop after 10 completed build cycles

Next Steps

• Read about the HELIX workflow and how phases work
• See the full CLI reference for automation and scripting
• Watch the demo reels of HELIX in action