diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..434ff6d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -0,0 +1,34 @@
+# Python
+.venv/
+__pycache__/
+*.pyc
+*.pyo
+*.egg-info/
+dist/
+build/
+
+# SQLite databases (backed up separately via sqlite3 backup)
+*.db
+*.db-wal
+*.db-shm
+
+# Artifacts (regenerable)
+projects/*/artifacts/
+
+# Node
+node_modules/
+src/frontend/node_modules/
+
+# Logs
+logs/
+
+# IDE
+.idea/
+.vscode/
+*.swp
+
+# OS
+.DS_Store
+
+# Inbox (volatile)
+inbox/*.jsonl
diff --git a/tests/__init__.py b/tests/__init__.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e69de29