blank

blank is a CLI scaffolder for research projects driven by agentic AI workflows.

Install

If you do not already have pipx, run this one-time setup:

python3 -m pip install --user pipx
python3 -m pipx ensurepath
exec $SHELL -l

Install blank:

pipx install blank-agentic-cli
blank --help

Usage

blank init
blank init my-project
blank init my-project --project-name "My Project"
blank init my-project --dry-run
blank init my-project --force
blank init my-project --no-agents

By default, blank init resolves the latest TeXst release and paper/paper.typ imports that version:

#import "@preview/texst:<latest-version>": paper, nneq, caption-note, table-note, theorem, proof, prop, lem, rem, ass, cmain, csub, caption-with-note

TeXst repository:

• https://github.com/shusuke-ioku/texst

paper/aesthetics.typ is generated as a blank file so you can add custom style settings.

Generated scaffold

• analysis/scripts/
• analysis/data/
• analysis/output/
• paper/
• idea/
• .codex/project.md with default agent rules
• .codex/config.toml with Zotero + PDF-reader MCP server setup
• .codex/skills/ starter skill set and install scripts
• .claude/ defaults

MCP setup (Zotero + PDF reader)

Generated projects include:

• zotero MCP server via zotero-mcp
• pdf_reader MCP server via uvx markitdown-mcp

Quick local checks:

zotero-mcp --help
uvx markitdown-mcp --help

Development

python3 -m venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate
pip install -e . pytest
pytest

Release (PyPI)

1. Create PyPI project blank-agentic-cli and enable Trusted Publishing for this GitHub repo.
2. (Optional) Run GitHub Action publish manually with testpypi to verify packaging.
3. Tag a release:

git tag v0.1.0
git push origin v0.1.0

4. The publish workflow builds and uploads to PyPI.