What it does
This is a "skill", a set of instructions and helper tools, for AI agents such as Codex and Claude Code. It helps the agent research family history across the former Soviet Union and the Russian Empire, covering all 15 former Soviet republics. The agent works with church books, civil records, military files, deportation and repression records, and archive scans.
The makers say the focus is on evidence. Every find is logged so it can be traced back, and each claim gets a plain status such as "hypothesis", "corroborated" or "contradicted". People with the same name are kept separate until there is proof they are the same person. It also handles old place names, name spellings in several languages, and drafting letters to archives.
The final result is an HTML report you open in a browser, with a family tree and the evidence for each relationship. It can also export a PDF or a GEDCOM file (a standard family-tree format other programs can read). The instructions are written in Russian, but the agent replies in your own language.
Who it's for
People researching ancestors from Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, the Baltics, the Caucasus or Central Asia who already use an AI agent like Claude Code or Codex.
Can I use it without coding?
With some setup. You install it into an AI agent with a single command or by copying a folder, then simply describe your family question in plain words. New to this? Start here.
Can I run it?
- Cost
- Free, but needs an AI accountThe software is free, but it uses an online AI service (like OpenAI or Anthropic), which usually charges for use.
Try it
- Install an AI agent that supports skills, such as Claude Code or Codex.
- Add the skill using the Skills CLI or by copying the project folder into your agent's skills folder.
- Describe your family question to the agent, for example who a great-grandfather's parents were, and share any scans you have.
Using Claude Code, Cursor or another AI coding assistant? Paste the prompt and it will walk you through the setup.New to this?
Before you install
- Only download from the official GitHub page. Copies with similar names exist for many popular projects.
- Plain-AyI is an independent guide and doesn't host or review the software it lists. Please check each project's official page before installing.
- License (MIT): Very permissive: free to use, change and share, including for business.
- More on staying safe