Introduction

DS0 is an AI-native design system framework that scales from freelancer to enterprise.

What is DS0?

DS0 (Design System Zero) is the foundational "zero layer" for building design systems. It provides:

Headless Primitives — Accessible, unstyled components with full keyboard support and ARIA compliance
Styled Components — Beautiful defaults using Tailwind CSS, copy-paste into your project via CLI
Design Tokens — W3C DTCG format tokens that cascade from core → semantic → theme → brand
AI Manifests — Every component includes machine-readable metadata so AI tools can make intelligent suggestions
Cross-Platform — React, React Native (NativeWind), and Web Components from the same primitives

DS0 isn't all-or-nothing. Every layer is independently useful:

Pick What You Need	One Command	What You Get
Just tokens	`pnpm add @ds0/tokens`	CSS variables for colors, spacing, radius — in any project
Just primitives	`pnpm add @ds0/primitives`	Accessible headless components — bring your own CSS
One component	`npx ds0 add button`	A single styled component — nothing else
Full system	`npx ds0 init -y`	Everything, zero config

Think of it like Bootstrap: grab the parts you need, ignore the rest. Learn more →

DS0 auto-detects your framework. No manual configuration:

Already have a project? DS0 runs alongside your existing components with zero conflicts. See the integration guide →

Coming from Bootstrap, MUI, or Chakra? We have a migration guide →

Audience	How DS0 Helps
Freelancers	Grab styled components, ship fast. `npx ds0 add button` and go.
Startups	Consistent, accessible UI from day one. Grows with you.
Enterprise	Use headless primitives with your own brand tokens. Full governance.
AI Tools	Structured manifests and decision trees. Zero hallucination on component choices.

DS0 operates at three tiers:

Primitives (@ds0/primitives) — Headless behavior, keyboard, ARIA. Install as npm package.
Styled Components — Primitives + Tailwind. Copied into your project, you own the code.
Recipes — Multi-component patterns (auth forms, dashboards). Also copy-paste.

Choose the entry point that fits your situation:

🟢 New project? → npx ds0 init -y → Quick Start

🟡 Existing project? → npx ds0 init alongside your current stack → Existing Projects

🔵 Just need pieces? → Install individual layers → Cherry-Picking

🟠 Migrating from something? → Component-by-component replacement → Migration Guide

DS0 is MIT licensed. Use it for anything. Contribute at github.com/rwyatt2/ds0.