Claude Task Master Project Details

Project Overview

Claude Task Master is an AI-driven task management system designed for collaboration with AI-enhanced code editors such as Cursor, Lovable, Windsurf, and Roo. Leveraging the intelligent capabilities of Claude AI, the system automatically parses Product Requirement Documents (PRDs) into structured, executable development tasks, creating a shared working language for developers and AI assistants.

Core Features

Intelligent Task Management

• PRD Auto-Parsing: The system can automatically parse Product Requirement Documents and generate content-based, structured tasks, allowing you to convert requirements into executable development tasks in seconds.
• Intelligent Task Prioritization: The system can determine task dependencies and priorities, enabling it to recommend the next tasks to be addressed.
• Complexity Analysis: Claude Task Master includes a complexity analysis feature that identifies tasks requiring further decomposition.

Deep IDE Integration

• MCP Protocol Support: Allows you to run Task Master directly from your editor via the Model Control Protocol (MCP).
• Automatic Configuration: Upon project initialization, the .cursor/rules/dev_workflow.mdc file is automatically loaded by Cursor, providing the AI with knowledge of the task management system.
• Natural Language Interaction: Supports interaction with the system via natural language, eliminating the need to memorize complex commands.

Multi-Model AI Support

The system supports various AI providers, including Claude, Perplexity, OpenAI, and other models accessible via OpenRouter, with specific support for:

• Anthropic API (Claude)
• OpenAI API
• Google Gemini API
• Perplexity API
• xAI API
• Claude Code (no API key required)

Core Workflow

Project Initialization

# Global installation
npm install -g task-master-ai

# Initialize project
task-master init

# Initialize with specific rules
task-master init --rules cursor,windsurf,vscode

PRD-Driven Development

1. Create PRD: Create a detailed Product Requirement Document in .taskmaster/docs/prd.txt.
2. Parse PRD: Use task-master parse-prd your-prd.txt to automatically generate tasks.
3. Task Execution: Collaborate with AI assistants via natural language to execute tasks.

Intelligent Task Operations

# View all tasks
task-master list

# Get next recommended task
task-master next

# Display specific tasks
task-master show 1,3,5

# Analyze task complexity
task-master analyze-complexity

# Research latest information
task-master research "latest JWT authentication best practices"

Advanced Features

Claude Code Integration

When using Claude Code as an AI provider, Task Master now guides the AI to analyze project structure, existing implementations, and patterns before generating tasks or subtasks. This provides:

• No API Key Required: Uses a local Claude instance.
• Codebase Awareness: Generates tasks based on actual code analysis.
• Parallel Execution: Supports the simultaneous execution of multiple independent tasks.

Tagged Task Management

Task Master supports tagged task lists for multi-context development, which is particularly useful for handling git branches or different project phases:

• Create independent task contexts for different feature branches.
• Supports copying and merging of task lists.
• Facilitates team collaboration and minimizes conflicts.

Research Enhancement

Task Master includes powerful research tools that provide fresh, up-to-date information beyond the AI's knowledge cutoff:

• Research the latest technical solutions before implementation.
• Obtain project-specific contextual information.
• Update task content based on the latest findings.

Configuration and Deployment

MCP Configuration (Recommended)

For Cursor users, a one-click installation link is available:

cursor://anysphere.cursor-deeplink/mcp/install?name=taskmaster-ai&config=...

Manual Configuration Example

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "taskmaster-ai": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "--package=task-master-ai", "task-master-ai"],
      "env": {
        "ANTHROPIC_API_KEY": "YOUR_ANTHROPIC_API_KEY_HERE",
        "PERPLEXITY_API_KEY": "YOUR_PERPLEXITY_API_KEY_HERE"
      }
    }
  }
}

Practical Application Scenarios

Typical Workflow

In practical development, teams can achieve a seamless continuous build cycle with Task Master, from implementing features to verifying work, running tests, and then immediately receiving the next task recommendation:

1. Implement the current task.
2. Verify functionality.
3. Run tests.
4. Mark task as complete.
5. Immediately get the next task.

Effects and Impact

The Claude Task Master + Cursor agent workflow not only improves the development process but completely transforms it. By providing Cursor with structured task context, it transforms the AI assistant from a helpful code suggester into an active implementation partner.

Developers report that this approach significantly saves time and eliminates the most time-consuming aspects of development: context switching, integration challenges, and implementation details.

Technical Features

Task Structure

The system uses a specially designed task format to provide comprehensive information for both human and AI assistants:

• Structured JSON format.
• Dependency mapping.
• Complexity assessment.
• Status tracking.

Extensibility

• Sub-Agent Support: Supports specialized agents such as task orchestrators, task executors, and task checkers.
• Parallel Execution: Intelligently identifies tasks that can be processed in parallel.
• Quality Assurance: Built-in task quality check mechanism.

License

Task Master is licensed under the MIT License with a Commons Clause. This means you can use it for any purpose (personal, commercial, academic), modify the code, distribute copies, and create and sell products using Task Master, but you cannot sell Task Master itself or offer it as a hosted service.

Summary

Claude Task Master represents a significant advancement in AI-assisted development tools. It not only provides task management capabilities but, more importantly, creates a structured collaboration framework between human developers and AI assistants. Whether you are managing complex development projects or using it for entirely different purposes like book editing, Claude Task Master demonstrates a crucial step forward in how we can collaborate with AI assistants on structured projects.