Archon turns software development processes into owned YAML workflows that run deterministically with AI agents, approval queues and governance. It orchestrates existing coding agents such as Claude Code, Codex and Pi with your own accounts rather than being another coding agent itself.
Project overview
It targets the documented pain of non-deterministic AI coding agents that skip plans, tests or PR templates and force step-by-step supervision, by letting you define deterministic YAML workflows with a human-on-the-loop attention queue.
Project type
AI Coding · Workflow
Use cases
Coding & Development · Automation
Deployment
Refer to project documentation
License
MIT
Best for
Developers who supervise AI coding agents step by step and want their plans, tests and PR templates enforced deterministically through owned YAML workflows.
Teams already using coding agents such as Claude Code, Codex or Pi who want orchestration, approval queues and governance on top of their existing accounts.
Key capabilities
Pauses a run as a single attention item with a recommendation and choices when a decision is needed; you answer via web console or CLI and the run continues.
Limitations and risks
Archon depends on external coding agent providers (Claude Code, Codex, Pi) and their accounts/subscriptions, which are required to run agents.
The end-to-end data boundary is unclear: the self-hosted binary runs locally, but agents run through external providers and telemetry is optional, so a local-only data boundary is not established.
Getting started
Install Claude Code and sign in, or install Codex; then run curl -fsSL https://archon.diy/install | bash, and try archon workflow run archon-investigate "Why does the login test fail?".
Evidence and sources
README: You describe how work should get done as YAML workflows, and Archon runs them with AI agents, scripts and your decisions in the places that need them.
README: Ask a coding agent to fix a bug and the result depends on the run. It may skip the plan, forget the tests or ignore your PR template.
README: archon workflow run build-feature "Add dark mode to the settings page"
README: When a run reaches a decision it can't make, it pauses as one attention item: what it is, why it matters, a recommendation and the choices. You answer and it carries on.
README: Save it in your repository's `.archon/workflows/`, swap `bun run test` for your own test command, and run it: