diff --git a/src/index.ts b/src/index.ts
index 3f5e710..f78d8e9 100644
--- a/src/index.ts
+++ b/src/index.ts
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ import { OneCLI } from '@onecli-sh/sdk';
 
 import {
   ASSISTANT_NAME,
+  GROUPS_DIR,
   IDLE_TIMEOUT,
   ONECLI_URL,
   POLL_INTERVAL,
@@ -133,6 +134,22 @@ function registerGroup(jid: string, group: RegisteredGroup): void {
   // Create group folder
   fs.mkdirSync(path.join(groupDir, 'logs'), { recursive: true });
 
+  // Copy CLAUDE.md template into the new group folder so agents have
+  // identity and instructions from the first run.  (Fixes #1391)
+  const groupMdFile = path.join(groupDir, 'CLAUDE.md');
+  if (!fs.existsSync(groupMdFile)) {
+    const templateFile = path.join(GROUPS_DIR, 'global', 'CLAUDE.md');
+    if (fs.existsSync(templateFile)) {
+      let content = fs.readFileSync(templateFile, 'utf-8');
+      if (ASSISTANT_NAME !== 'Andy') {
+        content = content.replace(/^# Andy$/m, `# ${ASSISTANT_NAME}`);
+        content = content.replace(/You are Andy/g, `You are ${ASSISTANT_NAME}`);
+      }
+      fs.writeFileSync(groupMdFile, content);
+      logger.info({ folder: group.folder }, 'Created CLAUDE.md from template');
+    }
+  }
+
   // Ensure a corresponding OneCLI agent exists (best-effort, non-blocking)
   ensureOneCLIAgent(jid, group);