How it works
Open your project locally.
Point etchpad at the repo on your machine. It parses the code with tree-sitter and your own language servers — the map is built from your actual code, on your machine.
See the structure you already have.
Your existing code is remapped into a live diagram, organised by real dependencies — every block is a construct in your code, every wire a reference that actually exists. It's generated procedurally from the source, so it's factually correct, never out of date, and never imagined.
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Zoom out for architecture; zoom in until you're reading the code
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Select anything to inspect it: users, usages, blast radius
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Recent changes surface on the map where they happened
Direct your AI with confidence.
Now you can see what needs to change. Prompt Claude or Codex from the built-in terminal — and review what comes back as a diff overlay on the same map.
Under the hood
The engineering that makes the map worth trusting
Parses and indexes your codebase into a semantic model — so you navigate by definitions, references and dependencies, not files and folders.
A blueprint generated deterministically from source. Zoom in until you're reading code; zoom out to read complexity and module, package and crate interdependencies.
Dispatch Claude Code or Codex to walk the hardest parts. The blueprint stays ground truth — inference is layered on top, never mixed in.
One universal visual language across languages. Learn it once; it holds even when a single project mixes several.
Everything on the lower line is derived from your source, so it is correct by construction. The upper line is the only part an AI writes — and it lands on top of the blueprint, never inside it.
Etchpad is on a mission to make it as ergonomic as possible for developers to understand and ingest their code — so they can dispatch agents to work effectively, or make the edits themselves.
Works with your stack
Unlock cleaner code
Transform how you navigate, understand, and modify complex software systems
Prose walkthroughs on the map
AI-written explanations of your codebase, pinned to real constructs — every claim links to the code it describes.
Visual walkthroughs
AI-authored overlays trace the salient paths through the diagram — the architecture, explained on the architecture.
Review diffs with full context
Open a PR or commit as an overlay on the map — see each change where it lives and what it touches. The AI overlays work on the diff, too.
Follow the flow
See execution paths laid out in front of you
Remember spatially
Use spatial cues to recall structure faster
Zoom with intent
Start abstract; drill into code only when needed
Assess impact in seconds
Visualize blast radius before you refactor
Interact at block level
Blocks delineate code structures — hover one for its signature, select it to light up everything it touches
Expose module dependencies
A live graph of your package structure, navigable and editable
Written in Rust
for stability and performance