AnswerDotAI / AnswerDotAI/llms-txt

Proposal: Extend llms.txt to installed packages to support local filesystem resolution

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Description

llms.txt already targets the developer use case; the spec explicitly mentions "coding library documentation" and "development environments" as key scenarios. The convention works well when an agent is browsing the web for information or docs.

However, when a coding agent is working locally with an installed dependency, the package is already on disk. The agent already resolved the import to a directory. A web fetch for information is less efficient than co-location with the code. It is slower, can introduce version mismatch, and unhelpful for private or internal-only packages.

**Proposed Extension**
Packages should ship a llms.txt at their root, and agents should read it when they encounter that package.

Resolution Rule:
import foo -> resolves foo's install path -> read /llms.txt if present

This mirrors the existing web convention: agents just resolve from /llms.txt rather than /llms.txt. The solution works for any ecosystem where an import resolves locally.

Package authors ship llms.txt alongside their source. Agent runtimes update to run a single stat prior to source exploration for an unfamiliar import. Private and internal packages have a non-domain dependent support path.

Contributor guide

No contributing guide indexed for this repository

Research direction

Start by reviewing the existing llms.txt specification and the documented package-author and agent use cases. Define how local package resolution, package versions, and agent behavior should be specified; done means the proposal has an agreed resolution rule and clear documentation for package authors and agent runtimes.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Domain
ai, developer-experience, documentation
Issue type
Feature
Difficulty
5/5
Estimated time
Over a week
Activity status
Quiet
Clarity
Mostly clear
Newbie friendliness
35/100

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