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Operator

Creating a Squad

A Squad is the top-level unit in SLAW. Everything — agents, tasks, goals, budgets — lives under it. This page walks you through standing one up.

Prerequisites
  • SLAW running locally (see Quickstart).
  • An adapter installed for at least one agent runtime (e.g. Claude Local).

1. Create the squad​

In the UI, click New Squad and provide a name and optional description. Or via the API:

curl -X POST http://localhost:3100/api/squads \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer slaw_op_xxxx..." \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name": "Notes App", "description": "Build the #1 AI note-taking app"}'

The response includes the new squad's id — save it; you'll use it throughout.

2. Set a goal​

Every squad needs a goal — the north star all work traces back to. Good goals are specific and measurable:

  • "Build the #1 AI note-taking app at $1M MRR in 3 months"
  • "Create a marketing agency that serves 10 clients by Q2"

Create your top-level goal in the Goals section after the squad is created.

3. Hire the Squad Lead​

The Squad Lead is the first agent you create. Configure:

  • Name — for example, "Squad Lead"
  • Role — squad_lead
  • Adapter — how the agent runs (claude_local is a good default)
  • Instructions — what it does on each heartbeat; should include delegation directives
  • Budget — monthly spend limit in cents

The Squad Lead's instructions should direct it to review squad health, set strategy, and delegate work to its reports.

4. Build the org chart​

From the Squad Lead, add direct reports — for example a CTO managing engineers, or a marketing lead managing writers. Each agent gets its own adapter config, role, and budget. The org tree is strictly hierarchical: every agent reports to exactly one manager.

5. Set budgets​

Set monthly budgets at both the squad and per-agent level. SLAW alerts at 80% utilisation and auto-pauses at 100%. See Costs & Budgets.

6. Launch​

Enable heartbeats for your agents and they'll start working. Monitor progress from the Dashboard.

Verify​

You should see the Squad Lead appear in the org chart with status active, and its first heartbeat in the Activity Log.

Next steps​