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Installation

Denote is a macOS desktop app. It runs alongside Claude Code, which is a separate install. Both are required.

Beta access

Denote is in beta. To request access, use the Request access form on the Denote home page. You'll receive a download link by email once your request is approved.

Prerequisites

  • macOS 13 (Ventura) or later. Apple Silicon and Intel are both supported.
  • Claude Code installed and signed in. Denote relies on Claude Code to run skills and generate code. If you don't have Claude Code yet, follow the Anthropic install guide first.
  • A code editor of your choice, if you want to open project files outside Denote. Not required.

Install Denote

  1. Download the .dmg from the link in your beta access email.
  2. Open the .dmg and drag Denote to your Applications folder.
  3. Eject the disk image.

First launch

Denote is not yet notarized with Apple, so macOS Gatekeeper will block the first launch. You only need to do this once per install.

On macOS 15 (Sequoia) or later:

  1. Double-click Denote in Applications. You'll see a dialog saying "Denote" Not Opened — Apple could not verify "Denote" is free of malware. Click Done.
  2. Open System Settings → Privacy & Security.
  3. Scroll down to the Security section. You'll see a line: "Denote" was blocked to protect your Mac.
  4. Click Open Anyway. Authenticate with your password or Touch ID when prompted.
  5. Double-click Denote again. A fresh dialog with an Open button will appear. Click it.

On older macOS versions: right-click the Denote icon in Applications and choose Open from the menu. Click Open on the confirmation dialog.

After this one-time approval, Denote launches normally from then on. It will open to the Home screen, where you can create a new project or open an existing one.

What gets created on disk

When you create a new project, Denote writes a folder at the location you choose with this structure:

my-project/
  .git/                ← initialized on first open if missing
  .claude/
    commands/          ← slash commands for the layer skills
  design/              ← everything Denote's layers author
    vision.json
    ontology.json
    architecture.json
    screens.json
    SPEC.md            ← generated by /spec
    .denote/           ← activity log and internal state
  intelligence/        ← knowledge, skills, agents (copied from Denote)
    catalog/           ← generated JSON exports of system-level catalogs
  CLAUDE.md            ← project instructions for Claude Code

Everything under design/ is human-readable JSON and Markdown. Everything under intelligence/ is a local copy of Denote's design intelligence, which Claude Code reads when running skills. You can edit both by hand; Denote will pick up the changes the next time the project is opened.

See Project file structure for the full tree and what each file is responsible for.

Updating Denote

Denote checks for updates on every launch and once every 24 hours while open. When a new version is available, you'll see an in-app dialog with an Update button. Updates are delivered via GitHub Releases and applied automatically when you accept.

Where to next

You are ready to walk the full pipeline. Open the Quick Start for a ten-minute tour from empty project to a built page.