diff --git a/extensions/assess/README.md b/extensions/assess/README.md
index 06cf5d1af6..b6af9a2289 100644
--- a/extensions/assess/README.md
+++ b/extensions/assess/README.md
@@ -6,6 +6,8 @@ Discovery answers *"is this worth building?"* Delivery answers *"how do we build
 
 ## Overview
 
+`assess` runs inside an initialized Spec Kit project (it writes assessments under `.specify/assessments/`), but that project can be **completely empty of source code** — a freshly initialized project with no code works just as well as an established codebase. The input is just an idea: pasted text, a URL, or a ticket need no existing code, while a codebase pointer lets you assess an idea for code that already exists. Neither starting point is more "correct" than the other.
+
 Each idea lives in its own directory under `.specify/assessments/<slug>/`, with one Markdown artifact per stage:
 
 ```
diff --git a/extensions/assess/commands/speckit.assess.intake.md b/extensions/assess/commands/speckit.assess.intake.md
index dac575c227..02cfec9f14 100644
--- a/extensions/assess/commands/speckit.assess.intake.md
+++ b/extensions/assess/commands/speckit.assess.intake.md
@@ -21,6 +21,8 @@ The user input is the idea and (optionally) a slug. Treat it as one of:
 3. **A codebase pointer** — phrasing like "an idea for this repo" or a path. Read enough of the repository to record what the idea relates to.
 4. **A mix** of the above.
 
+There is **no requirement for existing source code**: within an initialized Spec Kit project, intake works just as well when the project is empty of code as when it already has a codebase. Pasted text or a URL (options 1–2) need no existing codebase; a codebase pointer (option 3) targets existing code. Both are equally valid.
+
 If the input is empty, ask the user for the idea (interactive), or stop with a note that there is nothing to intake (automated).
 
 ## Slug Resolution