# Allowance — Agent Context (Website)

This file is the authoritative context for autonomous agents working in this repository.

## What is this repo?

This is the static website for **Allowance** — the consumer trust layer between AI assistants and money. It is deployed to [useallowance.com](https://useallowance.com) via GitHub Pages.

## What is Allowance?

Allowance lets consumers safely give their AI assistants limited, revocable spending power. The AI never sees a card number — it operates within an **allowance**: a set of enforceable rules (spending limit, merchant restrictions, time expiration) defined by the user.

## Positioning

- **Target audience:** Consumers who already use AI assistants (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini) and want to delegate tasks that require payment.
- **The gap we fill:** Nobody is making it safe and simple for a consumer to let their AI buy something on their behalf. Enterprise tools are overkill. Privacy.com is designed for humans, not agents. Sharing a card is insecure.
- **Core primitive:** An allowance is a permission object, not a card. It defines rules. When those rules are satisfied, a temporary payment credential is generated.
- **Growth path:** Early adopters → mainstream consumers → platform integrations.
- **Not a card company.** Cards are the initial wedge. The core value is permission.

## Product capabilities

- Spending limits (per-task, daily, weekly, monthly)
- Merchant and category restrictions
- Time-based expiration (permissions expire by default)
- Instant revocation
- Full transaction log attributed to each agent and allowance
- No card sharing — temporary credentials only

## What the landing page communicates

- **Hero:** "Give your AI a wallet with rules."
- **Demo:** Four fixed-order shopping conversations that move from search through human confirmation, purchase approval, Face ID, and agent checkout.
- **Getting started:** Three direct paths for Messages, an existing AI, and the Allowance app.
- **Trust & control:** Features framed as peace of mind (limits, merchant rules, auto-expiry, revocation, logging, no card sharing).
- **Use cases:** Consumer scenarios (travel, coffee reorders, tickets, subscriptions).
- **CTAs:** Download the iOS app + connect ChatGPT, Claude, or an MCP-compatible agent at [useallowance.com/connect-agent](https://useallowance.com/connect-agent). The ChatGPT connection works across ChatGPT, ChatGPT Work, and Codex. Connect Allowance to your Claude account from your desktop. Then use it on claude.ai, in Claude Code, Cowork, and the Claude mobile app.

## Tech stack (website)

- Plain HTML + CSS + minimal vanilla JS (chat demo animation).
- Font: Inter via Google Fonts.
- Design system: white-first UI (#FFFFFF) with primary signal green (#0A7C52), neutral borders (#E2E8F0), and calm system-native surfaces.
- Hosted on GitHub Pages with custom domain.

## Repo structure

```
├── index.html         ← Main landing page with chat demo
├── connect-agent/     ← Agent connection chooser
├── connect-chatgpt/   ← ChatGPT ecosystem connection guide
├── connect-claude/    ← Claude ecosystem connection guide
├── mcp/               ← MCP-compatible agent setup
├── cli/               ← Advanced CLI setup
├── install/           ← Legacy redirect to /connect-agent
├── for-agents.html    ← Agent-readable landing page
├── faq.html           ← Frequently asked questions
├── llms.txt           ← Plain-text context for LLMs / crawlers
├── styles.css         ← All styles (design system)
├── CNAME              ← Custom domain config
├── robots.txt         ← SEO crawling rules
├── sitemap.xml        ← Search engine sitemap
├── agents.md          ← You are here
└── README.md          ← Human-facing overview
```

## Running locally

Always serve the site over HTTP — do **not** open `index.html` directly with `file://`.
CSS and assets are referenced with absolute paths (e.g. `/assets/...`, `/install`), which
404 under `file://` and the page renders unstyled.

```
python3 -m http.server 8000
```

Then open http://localhost:8000.

## Key facts

- **Company name:** Allowance
- **Website:** https://useallowance.com
- **Contact:** hello@useallowance.com
- **Stage:** Live and available. Download the iOS app or [connect an agent](https://useallowance.com/connect-agent).

## Rules for agents

- This repo is the **website only**. Do not introduce frontend frameworks, backend services, or general-purpose site build systems. The lightweight Node blog generator under `blog-src/scripts/` is an intentional, narrowly scoped exception for static editorial content.
- Do not invent traction, customers, funding, or metrics.
- Keep copy **consumer-facing and emotion-first** — not developer-facing, not investor-facing.
- Respect the existing design system (light + green accent, Inter, rounded cards, pill buttons).

## Blog maintenance

- Read `blog-src/BLOG.md` before modifying the blog system.
- Edit source posts under `blog-src/content/`.
- Never directly edit generated files under `/blog/` (HTML and images are both generated there).
- Preserve existing slugs unless explicitly asked to change them.
- Run validation, build, and tests after blog changes (`npm run blog:check`, `npm run blog:build`, `npm run test:blog`).
- Keep the deployed website fully static.
- Do not introduce a frontend framework.
- The lightweight Node blog generator is the only authorized build-tool exception.
- Preserve canonical URLs, structured data, RSS, and sitemap generation.
- Reuse the current Allowance design system.
- Do not publish drafts or future-dated posts.
- Ignore `.claude/worktrees/`.