DESIGN.md proposes a standard for conveying visual identity to coding agents
Google Labs Code has released DESIGN.md, an open format specification that lets developers describe a visual identity system to coding agents using a combination of machine-readable YAML design tokens and human-readable markdown prose.
Score breakdown
Adopting DESIGN.md gives coding agents a single, structured source of truth for a project's visual identity, reducing inconsistent UI output across agent-generated code.
- 01DESIGN.md is an open format specification from Google Labs Code for describing visual identity to coding agents.
- 02The format combines YAML front matter (machine-readable design tokens) with markdown prose (human-readable design rationale).
- 03Design tokens in the YAML block cover colors (hex values), typography (font family and size), spacing, and border radii.
Google Labs Code has released DESIGN.md, a format specification designed to bridge the gap between human design intent and the structured data that coding agents need to produce consistent user interfaces. The format uses YAML front matter to encode precise design tokens — including named color values (as hex codes), typography definitions (font family and size per text role), border radius values, and spacing units — while accompanying markdown prose explains the design rationale and application guidance behind those tokens.
The markdown section describes the aesthetic intent — "Architectural Minimalism meets Journalistic Gravitas" — giving an agent enough context to apply the tokens appropriately rather than mechanically.
The example in the repository illustrates a design system called "Heritage," which defines a palette of four colors (a deep ink primary, a slate secondary, a "Boston Clay" tertiary accent, and a warm limestone neutral), three typeface roles using Public Sans and Space Grotesk, and a small set of spacing and rounding values. The markdown section describes the aesthetic intent — "Architectural Minimalism meets Journalistic Gravitas" — giving an agent enough context to apply the tokens appropriately rather than mechanically. The repository includes a CLI package, example files, and a docs directory, and has accumulated 7k stars and 573 forks since publication.
Key facts
- 01DESIGN.md is an open format specification from Google Labs Code for describing visual identity to coding agents.
- 02The format combines YAML front matter (machine-readable design tokens) with markdown prose (human-readable design rationale).
- 03Design tokens in the YAML block cover colors (hex values), typography (font family and size), spacing, and border radii.
- 04Markdown prose explains why token values exist and how agents should apply them, not just what the values are.
- 05The repository includes a CLI package, examples, and documentation alongside the spec itself.
- 06The repo has 7k stars and 573 forks on GitHub.