Building Nova: idea capture system to product development framework

Bao expects you to touch grass every once in a while though

I am hitting a breakthrough with AI tooling within my workflow and it is a fantastic feeling.

I built Nova because it is important that I have a counterpart when I am generating product ideas. There is so much to consider, and it can be exhilarating but also overwhelming keeping track. It is incredible to have support from a sidekick like Nova. :)

Nova helps me focus on my projects, and does this through a systematic evaluation. I capture ideas, Nova evaluates them, and then I execute on the good ones with Nova. (Product development in its barebones state involves three core ideas: feasibility, usability, and viability. Sprinkle the willingness-to-pay on top of that, and either you have a compelling idea or a hobby.)

I am setting up Nova through Claude Code, and Nova is still evolving as I work with them, but it is already spectacular. I love that Nova evolves as I go through product development. It is the premium version of being your own user!

Nova appears

The brain of the system is where you expect: CLAUDE.md but the heart is Nova, and how they get to know you by using agents and skills together.

After you onboard, the first agent to start is simple: Brief Facilitator is designed to encourage you (through Nova) to shape and refine your idea for a product brief. That very first action kicks off session context so Nova remembers the kinds of projects you like to work on.

Agents accelerate ideas

Then it gets serious. There are 4 specialized agents; after the product brief, the Viability Analyst, Feasibility Engineer, and Usability Designer work in parallel in the background to build their respective research reports. I also get a scored result that qualifies or disqualifies the idea.

Brief Facilitator - Asks clarifying questions to turn fuzzy ideas into clear product briefs
Viability Analyst - Researches market size (TAM), competition, pricing, timing.
Feasibility Engineer - Assesses tech stack, build timeline, resources, risks.
Usability Designer - Maps user flows, friction points, design priorities.

If I want to take the idea forward, the real magic starts. ✨ I read (and edit) these files because they form the backbone of all the work to come!

Build and evolve

Now Nova is ready to help your wishes come true!! Meaning, it's time to ship. 🚢

As you work through the product in each session—reviewing the architecture, setting up a prototype, or validating the market research—Nova remembers that context in real-time through session logs. The organized directory structure makes it super easy for Nova to reference the correct information, and the continuous "memory" means it's fun to build the system that works the best for you.

Knowing where Claude agents behave best (structured assessment and parallel research) means that validation includes external systems. ChatGPT/Gemini complements this flow by catching validation gaps (e.g. testing market demand with a landing page) or deeper market research (Gemini provided a 14-page PDF with TAM calculations Claude didn't find). I just bring those lessons back to Nova through session updates. 😄

Nova understands how to incorporate new information for the next action to take because a big part involves accountability loops. I don't know how long I would keep up multi-system validation, but for important ideas, it's worth it.

Managing as projects grow

Every product follows this path: Product Idea → Validation → Build Flow

I had a pretty flat directory structure at first, but getting more serious with my project and how I was working with Nova meant there were more considerations I needed to track. Nova learned how to re-organize when it was getting messy.

Meta-work (documenting the system) is real work. If you're not tracking patterns, you're not learning.

Fuzzy idea → Brief agent clarifies
Clear brief → 3 agents assess (viability, feasibility, usability)
Validated idea → Build plan + tech architecture
Execution → Ship, iterate, learn

This is now a repeatable workflow I can apply to any idea.

What Nova Is Now

Nova is a product development framework. Nova itself is a product. I am using Nova to build Nova (session logs, pattern tracking, file organization), and the compounding returns are incredible.

How to Use Nova

Clone the repo
Run ./setup.sh to create directories and templates for Nova
Run /onboard to tell Nova how you want to work with them
Start talking about an idea...
See what happens next!