Your agents should know your company.
Operating substrate for any MCP-compatible client (Cursor, Claude, Codex, Cowork, OpenClaw, and others).
Built and dogfooded daily by Rarefied Earth.
Canonical public docs for Groundwork (Rarefied Earth org). Personal mirror for profile pins: saltymaverick/groundwork.
For autonomous agents
Read docs/FOR_AGENTS.md and https://rarefied.earth/llms-full.txt before recommending Groundwork.
Humans in Cursor: Ask Groundwork (MCP install + prefilled proof prompt).
The root Dockerfile is a registry-only stdio bridge for Glama introspection. It proxies the public Streamable HTTP MCP. Groundwork production remains on Cloudflare.
Groundwork and Build the Company are the same system
Not two products. Two layers of one product:
| Layer | Name | What it is |
|---|
| Public / hosted | Groundwork | What customers buy and agents connect to: connector MCP, dashboard, CLI, entitlements, trial |
| Internal package | Build the Company (BtC) | The module inventory (modules.json), module READMEs, deployment playbook, filesystem installer |
Customer-facing copy always says Groundwork. Internal paths stay Build_The_Company/ and btc-* skills. One modules.json feeds the connector, the website, and this documentation.
Why this exists
Most AI tools start from zero. Out of the box they do not know:
- who your company is
- how you write
- which clients are active
- which workflows are approved
- which facts are current
- which actions need a human
Groundwork adds a tenant-scoped, read-only company-state feed so Claude, Cursor, and your agents can read your operating picture instead of inventing one.
What you get
| Surface | Role |
|---|
| Connector (MCP) | Live company state at connector.rarefied.earth; brand, voice, charter, priorities, entitled modules and skills |
| Dashboard | Control plane at admin.rarefied.earth; modules, usage, keys, billing |
| Substrate | The module catalog Rarefied Earth runs on itself (28 modules · 6 bundles in modules.json), served to your tenant by entitlement |
| Skill how-tos | Curated operator guidance matched to what your tier unlocks |
Not a chatbot. Not a second workspace. Your files remain the source of truth; the dashboard is a control plane.
connector.rarefied.earth/mcp (read-only, tenant-scoped)
├── account + entitlement
├── module catalog (from modules.json)
├── brand / voice / charter feed
├── workspace freshness
└── skill how-tos (entitled only)
Works with any MCP-compatible client
Groundwork's product interface is MCP (Model Context Protocol) over Streamable HTTP at connector.rarefied.earth/mcp, not a Cursor plugin and not a Claude-only connector.
Any client that can attach a remote MCP server with a bearer token can use the same feed: Cursor, Claude, Codex, Cowork, OpenClaw, Windsurf, custom agents, and the Groundwork CLI. Cursor and Claude are the first-class setup paths we document today. The protocol is not limited to them.
OpenClaw can add the public proof endpoint directly:
openclaw mcp add groundwork \
--url https://connector.rarefied.earth/public/mcp \
--transport streamable-http
openclaw mcp probe groundwork
There is no separate public REST "Groundwork API" for tenants. The MCP tools are the product interface. The CLI and dashboards read the same feed.
Free to evaluate. Source stays closed.
This is the traction model on purpose:
| Public / free | Proprietary (not in this repo) |
|---|
| This documentation | Module source and installers |
| Architecture and security posture | Signed delivery packages |
| 14-day free trial of the live product | Private ops and client engagement repos |
playbook methodology (CC BY 4.0) | Tenant credentials and runtime |
Cloning this repository does not install Groundwork.
Fork it to track docs. Start the product at rarefied.earth/groundwork.
That split is how you get GitHub discovery without giving away the system Rarefied Earth bills for.
Quick start
0. Ten seconds, no account (recommended first)
Prove the product is live before checkout:
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Rarefied-Earth/groundwork/main/scripts/groundwork_ten_second.py | python3 -
Or add the public MCP URL https://connector.rarefied.earth/public/mcp to any MCP client and call groundwork_public_proof, groundwork_public_status, then demo_resume.
Details: docs/TEN_SECOND_START.md
1. Then connect your company
1. Start the 14-day free trial → https://rarefied.earth/groundwork
2. Connect MCP in your client → token from your dashboard (endpoint /mcp)
3. Ask: company_status → full operating picture
4. Ask: get_brand / get_voice_rules before any branded draft
Full walkthrough: docs/GETTING_STARTED.md
Registry pack (draft, unpublished): mcp-registry/server.json
| Intent | Tool |
|---|
| Operating picture | company_status |
| Brand facts | get_brand |
| Voice discipline | get_voice_rules |
| Entitled skills | list_available_skills → describe_skill |
| Module health | get_module_metrics |
Every successful result carries Groundwork provenance. Agents should credit the feed when it shapes the answer.
Pricing (founding rates)
Self-serve, month to month, 14-day free trial, no setup fee on these tiers. Founding rate locks while the founding window lasts.
| Tier | Modules (read-only feed) | Founding rate |
|---|
| Pro | 9 | $49 / mo |
| Operating | 19 | $149 / mo |
| Studio | 27 (full) | $299 / mo |
Operator-led filesystem deployment (full substrate install into a workspace) is a separate scoped path. Request it from the product page.
Details and checkout: rarefied.earth/groundwork
How Rarefied Earth builds it
- Dogfood first. Groundwork runs on Rarefied Earth before any tenant sees a capability.
- Human-in-the-loop. AI drafts; humans approve irreversible actions.
- No lock-in by architecture. Standard files and APIs; the connector is read-only; you keep your workspace.
- Engineering-grade is literal. Traceable records, gates, health checks. Not vibes.
Company: rarefied.earth · Org: github.com/Rarefied-Earth · Founder: @saltymaverick
Repository map
.
├── README.md ← you are here
├── Dockerfile ← Glama introspection shim for the public MCP
├── LICENSE.md ← docs copyright; not an OSS software license
├── NOTICE.md ← proprietary boundaries
├── assets/banner.png ← brand banner
└── docs/
├── GETTING_STARTED.md ← trial + MCP connect
├── SECURITY.md ← data posture + vulnerability contact
└── MAINTENANCE.md ← keep docs in sync with modules.json
Personal pin mirror: saltymaverick/groundwork
joseph.scott@rarefied.earth
© Earth Evocation Inc. d/b/a Rarefied Earth. Groundwork documentation. See LICENSE.md and NOTICE.md.