Current Priorities
What We're Working On Now
This is a living document that tracks what we're actively working on and where help is most valuable.
Priority Tiers
We organize work into three tiers with distinct timelines:
| Tier | Focus | Timeframe |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 | Active sprint work | Now |
| Tier 2 | Strategic foundation | Q1 2026 |
| Tier 3 | Important but not urgent | Ongoing |
Tier 1: Active Sprint Work
These are the initiatives we're actively working on right now.
Cloud Platform UX
Goal: Improve navigation and reduce friction in the cloud platform.
Problem: Users get lost navigating the organizational hierarchy (Org → Project → Application → Form/Workflow). The current hierarchy-first approach creates friction.
Solution: Move to an application-centric navigation model where Applications are the primary "gravity well" and organizational structure is supporting metadata.
Status: Active design and implementation
Help Needed:
- UX research and feedback
- Frontend implementation
- User testing
Conversational Forms Enhancement
Goal: Polish the "build once, deploy twice" experience.
What it is: Users can create a form schema once and deploy it as both:
- Traditional field-based UI
- AI-powered conversational interface
Current Focus:
- Progress tracker improvements (topic coverage display)
- Data extraction accuracy
- Conversation flow optimization
Status: Core functionality working, polishing UX
Help Needed:
- AI/ML improvements to extraction
- Frontend polish
- Testing across different form types
Testing Infrastructure
Goal: Expand automated and manual QA coverage.
Current State:
- Backend: 25/25 tests passing
- E2E: 22 test cases, 7 user journeys
- Manual: Structured test frameworks in place
Focus Areas:
- Increase E2E coverage
- Add visual regression testing
- Improve test documentation
Help Needed:
- Test case development
- Playwright expertise
- QA process improvements
Template Enhancement
Goal: Add rich metadata to templates for better discovery and SEO.
What we're adding:
- Marketing copy (headlines, descriptions, use cases)
- SEO metadata (keywords, schema markup)
- Developer documentation
- Sample data and examples
Status: In progress across 100+ templates
Help Needed:
- Content writing
- SEO optimization
- Template categorization review
Tier 2: Strategic Foundation (Q1 2026)
@netpad/templates NPM Package
Target: February 2026
Goal: Extract template library into standalone NPM package for:
- Use by AI assistants (via MCP)
- External developer consumption
- Documentation site integration
Status: Extraction in progress
What's Included:
- 100+ form templates
- 11+ workflow templates
- TypeScript definitions
- Rich metadata
Help Needed:
- Package architecture review
- TypeScript definitions
- Documentation
Documentation Overhaul
Goal: Developer-focused docs at docs.netpad.io
Current State: Documentation exists but needs improvement for developer audience.
Focus Areas:
- API reference
- SDK documentation
- Tutorial content
- Architecture guides
Help Needed:
- Technical writing
- Example creation
- Documentation structure
MCP Tools Refinement
Goal: Improve AI-powered form/workflow generation.
Current State: MCP server works with Claude and Cursor.
Focus Areas:
- Tool reliability improvements
- Better error messages
- Expanded capabilities
Help Needed:
- MCP/AI integration experience
- Testing with different AI assistants
- Tool design feedback
Tier 3: Important but Not Sprint Focus
Standalone Export Documentation
Status: Feature exists and works, but documentation is insufficient.
Why It Matters: This is the "escape hatch" that gives developers confidence—they can export any NetPad app as a standalone Next.js application.
Need: Better documentation and examples.
Community Marketplace
Status: Committed feature, timeline TBD.
What it is: User-submitted applications with approval workflow, "Official App" badges, third-party integrations.
Current State: Infrastructure exists, needs polish and launch plan.
Self-Hosted Deployment
Status: Works, but no production enterprise customers yet.
Why It Matters: Important for compliance-heavy verticals (Finance, Healthcare).
Need: Documentation, deployment guides, customer feedback.
Where Help Is Most Needed
High Impact, Good Entry Points
| Area | Skills Needed | Complexity |
|---|---|---|
| Template metadata | Content writing | Low |
| Test case development | Testing, Playwright | Low-Medium |
| Documentation | Technical writing | Low-Medium |
| Frontend polish | React, MUI | Medium |
| UX research | User research | Medium |
High Impact, Higher Complexity
| Area | Skills Needed | Complexity |
|---|---|---|
| Conversational forms | AI/ML, React | High |
| MCP tools | AI integration | Medium-High |
| Workflow execution | Node.js, async | High |
| Performance optimization | Profiling, MongoDB | High |
How to Pick Something
If You're New to the Codebase
- Start with template metadata or documentation
- Write test cases (forces you to understand features)
- Review and provide feedback on UX
If You're an Experienced Engineer
- Look at the Tier 1 initiatives
- Pick an area matching your skills
- Propose an approach before diving deep
If You're Product/Design Focused
- Explore the live product thoroughly
- Focus on UX research and feedback
- Help with template curation and content
Current Blockers
| Blocker | Impact | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Navigation UX design | Affects all users | In progress |
| Conversational form progress tracker | User confusion | Known bug, investigating |
| MCP form generation parsing | AI tool reliability | Identified, needs fix |
Questions to Consider
As you're ramping up, think about:
- What interests you most? Forms, workflows, AI, infrastructure?
- What's your time availability? This helps scope contributions.
- What do you want to learn? We can match work to growth areas.
- What confuses you? Fresh eyes find friction we've become blind to.
Next Steps
- Read Getting Started to get set up
- Explore the product at netpad.io
- Pick an area from this document
- Reach out to discuss your interests
Priorities shift—this document is updated regularly.