diff --git a/.github/workflows/release.yml b/.github/workflows/release.yml
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index 0000000..4e08122
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+++ b/.github/workflows/release.yml
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+name: release
+
+# release-please: watches conventional commits on main, opens (and keeps
+# updating) a release PR that bumps the version and assembles the
+# changelog. Merging that PR creates the vX.Y.Z tag and the GitHub
+# release. Works with branch protection: the release itself lands as an
+# ordinary PR; no direct pushes to main are needed.
+on:
+  push:
+    branches: [main]
+
+permissions:
+  contents: write
+  pull-requests: write
+
+jobs:
+  release-please:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    steps:
+      - uses: googleapis/release-please-action@v4
+        with:
+          config-file: release-please-config.json
+          manifest-file: .release-please-manifest.json
diff --git a/.release-please-manifest.json b/.release-please-manifest.json
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index 0000000..b985ff6
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+++ b/.release-please-manifest.json
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+{
+  ".": "0.0.1"
+}
diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
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+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
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+# Changelog
+
+All notable changes to sattle are documented in this file. The format is
+based on [Keep a Changelog](https://keepachangelog.com/en/1.1.0/), and
+releases are automated with
+[release-please](https://github.com/googleapis/release-please) from
+conventional commits: it maintains a release PR that bumps `package.json`
+and updates this file; merging that PR tags `vX.Y.Z` and creates the
+GitHub release.
diff --git a/release-please-config.json b/release-please-config.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e92d6a5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/release-please-config.json
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+{
+  "$schema": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/googleapis/release-please/main/schemas/config.json",
+  "packages": {
+    ".": {
+      "release-type": "node",
+      "bump-minor-pre-major": true,
+      "bump-patch-for-minor-pre-major": true,
+      "include-v-in-tag": true,
+      "draft": false
+    }
+  }
+}