diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 47e20ee..d7c275e 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -7,6 +7,36 @@ domain state, browser orchestration, design tokens, GPUI shell, and Servo host c
 Reference GPUI ecosystem repositories live under `references/` for local review and are excluded
 from version control.
 
+## Build Prerequisites
+
+- Rust toolchain from `rust-toolchain.toml` (installed automatically by `rustup`).
+- **macOS:** the full **Xcode** app plus its **Metal Toolchain** component. GPUI
+  compiles Metal shaders at build time with `xcrun metal`, which the standalone
+  Command Line Tools do not provide — a plain `cargo run` under Command Line
+  Tools fails with `xcrun: error: unable to find utility "metal"`. Install it once:
+
+  ```bash
+  DEVELOPER_DIR=/Applications/Xcode.app/Contents/Developer \
+    xcodebuild -downloadComponent MetalToolchain
+  ```
+
+  `scripts/run_dev.sh` then resolves a Metal-capable `DEVELOPER_DIR` automatically
+  and stops with actionable guidance if none is found. Run the desktop shell with
+  it rather than a bare `cargo run` — it also builds the Servo sidecar and wires
+  `ELY_SERVO_SIDECAR`:
+
+  ```bash
+  scripts/run_dev.sh https://servo.org
+  ```
+
+- **Linux:** the native dependencies the CI `portable` job installs
+  (`libasound2-dev libfontconfig1-dev libssl-dev libwayland-dev libx11-dev
+  libx11-xcb-dev libxkbcommon-x11-dev libxrandr-dev`).
+- **Windows:** the MSVC toolchain (Visual Studio Build Tools).
+
+Linux and Windows render web content through Servo's software RGBA path, so they
+need no Metal/Xcode; `scripts/run_dev.sh` selects the software context there.
+
 ## Local Commands
 
 ```bash
diff --git a/agents.md b/agents.md
index b20e55d..6456d93 100644
--- a/agents.md
+++ b/agents.md
@@ -26,6 +26,14 @@ Servo pin: git rev in `Cargo.toml` `[workspace.dependencies]`; the whole
 engine (55 crates) moves with that one rev. Keep
 `docs/servo-embedding-architecture.md` pin reference in sync.
 
+## Run
+
+`scripts/run_dev.sh <url>` is the dev entrypoint: it builds the Servo sidecar,
+wires `ELY_SERVO_SIDECAR`, picks the hardware (macOS) or software (Linux/Windows)
+rendering context, and on macOS resolves a Metal-capable `DEVELOPER_DIR` (raw
+`cargo run` under Command Line Tools fails at gpui's `xcrun metal` shader build —
+see README Build Prerequisites). Screenshot probe: `scripts/verify_render.sh`.
+
 ## Verify (all must pass before commit; capture real exit codes)
 
 ```