The Internet Computer has just had a fresh coat of innovation thanks to Kristofer Lund’s update to the Next Gen ICP Starter Template. Developers keen on building sleek, scalable web apps on the Internet Computer Protocol (ICP) now have a new playground, and it’s stocked with all the shiny bits that make modern front-end and back-end development a little more joyful—and a lot more efficient.
The updated template blends the best of today’s popular tools and libraries with the flexibility of the Internet Computer’s backend. For frontend developers, it’s a treat: React 19, TypeScript, Vite 6, Tailwind 4, Shadcn/UI, Tanstack Query and Router all come bundled in. On the backend, a Rust-based canister greets users with a single, friendly endpoint that returns a greeting message. That’s it—simple, elegant, and enough to get you started without tripping over unnecessary complexity.
React 19’s inclusion alone brings a hefty list of new capabilities. The latest version supports form actions and introduces optimistic UI updates while mutating. That means a faster, snappier interface that feels responsive even before data fetching completes. When paired with Vite 6—its most ambitious release in years—developers can expect serious performance gains and flexibility. Vite’s new Environment API, improved framework support, and better runtime performance make it an ideal choice for today’s web workloads.
Tailwind 4, which has undergone a full rebuild, also joins the stack. It now features faster builds, more useful CSS classes, and noticeably better performance. With support for shadcn/ui now available for Tailwind 4, the design system just got easier to implement. The addition of Tanstack Query 5 and Tanstack Router makes state management and routing more scalable and maintainable out of the box. For developers working on apps that require dynamic content updates, these upgrades remove many of the common pain points.
The build pipeline, meanwhile, leans on SWC—the Rust-based compiler that’s up to 70 times faster than Babel. Combined with the new flat configuration API in ESLint 9, which improves custom rule organisation and clarity, this setup is clearly optimised for speed and clean coding practices.
For developers eager to get going, there are two clear paths to setting up a development environment: one streamlined through a VS Code Dev Container, and the other a manual setup using pnpm and a local Internet Computer environment. The Dev Container option provides a plug-and-play Docker container with all the required dependencies already installed. It’s perfect for those who want to skip the configuration legwork and get straight to development. With Docker, Visual Studio Code, and the Dev Containers Extension installed, users can simply open the repository in the container and start building.
For those who prefer to do things the traditional way, the manual route involves a few prerequisites: a local dev environment for the Internet Computer and pnpm for package management. From there, it’s as straightforward as cloning the repo, installing dependencies, starting the local ICP network, and deploying the canisters.
The starter template’s frontend allows users to enter their name and receive a personalised greeting fetched from the Rust-powered backend. It’s a simple interaction, but it demonstrates the full stack in action: frontend to backend, request to response, all connected through ICP infrastructure. During development, hot reloading is handled by Vite, so developers can see changes in real time—no need to restart the server or rebuild the project manually.
The entire project is open source, licensed under MIT, and contributions are actively encouraged. Whether it’s through opening an issue, submitting a pull request, or suggesting tweaks to existing features, the project welcomes all forms of community participation. The codebase lives on GitHub, and it’s designed to be forked and customised. As far as templates go, this one does a fine job of acting like a launchpad rather than a constraint.
While ICP itself has been building momentum as a decentralised computing platform, efforts like this starter template help make it accessible to developers who are used to working in React and TypeScript ecosystems. For newcomers, having a well-documented, current setup that’s ready to use reduces the friction often associated with getting started on a new tech stack. For seasoned devs, it offers a polished, performance-friendly foundation that doesn’t require hours of setup.
By packaging together a modern stack and providing the tooling to get running quickly, Kristofer’s update fills a gap many developers often stumble into: the leap between concept and code. Too many starter kits get stale fast, and updates lag behind the fast-moving front-end world. This one keeps up, and that means less time fixing broken dependencies and more time shipping features.
The attention to performance and developer ergonomics is hard to miss. SWC’s inclusion isn’t just a speed boost; it’s a strategic move to future-proof the template as Babel slowly loses favour. ESLint’s new flat config structure is forward-looking too, providing a clearer path for teams who want better control over their linting rules. Tailwind 4’s rebuild ensures the CSS side of things won’t be a bottleneck either, especially with shadcn/ui now fully in the picture. All of it points to a setup where developers can think about functionality, not boilerplate.
There’s no clutter, no over-complication. Just the essentials for building modern apps on the Internet Computer. The backend doesn’t overreach—it returns a greeting, which is precisely the kind of small function that’s easy to expand on without breaking anything. It’s a sensible default.
Kristofer, who works in developer advocacy at Dfinity, has clearly brought his experience to bear in shaping this template. The documentation is clear, the setup process is smooth, and the design choices reflect an understanding of how developers actually work, not just how platforms want them to work. By integrating contemporary tools without forcing a particular workflow, the template respects the developer’s preferences while giving them a nudge toward best practices.
There’s a noticeable lean toward speed and simplicity throughout the stack, and that shows an awareness of how frustrating slow feedback loops can be during development. By using fast compilers, modern CSS frameworks, and a frontend that updates in real-time, the template doesn’t just get you started—it keeps you moving.
It’s also worth noting that this isn’t locked into any proprietary systems. Everything here is open source, extensible, and modular. Don’t like Tanstack Router? Swap it out. Want to use Zustand instead of Tanstack Query? Go for it. The template sets up the plumbing and gets out of the way.
The Internet Computer still has some way to go in reaching the popularity of more mainstream platforms, but steps like this template make the ecosystem more approachable. By using familiar front-end technologies alongside the power of canisters on ICP, developers get the best of both worlds: modern UI frameworks and decentralised backend infrastructure.
This isn’t some bloated mega-template filled with every feature under the sun. It’s lean, it’s modern, and it does one thing well: giving developers a solid starting point for building fast, responsive, and scalable applications on the Internet Computer.
Fork it, tweak it, build something fun—or serious. Either way, it’s ready.
