diff --git a/server/package.json b/server/package.json
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..ee9939af
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/package.json
@@ -0,0 +1,30 @@
+{
+  "name": "@paperclip/server",
+  "version": "0.0.1",
+  "private": true,
+  "type": "module",
+  "scripts": {
+    "dev": "tsx watch src/index.ts",
+    "build": "tsc",
+    "start": "node dist/index.js",
+    "typecheck": "tsc --noEmit"
+  },
+  "dependencies": {
+    "@paperclip/db": "workspace:*",
+    "@paperclip/shared": "workspace:*",
+    "drizzle-orm": "^0.38.4",
+    "express": "^5.1.0",
+    "pino": "^9.6.0",
+    "pino-http": "^10.4.0",
+    "zod": "^3.24.2"
+  },
+  "devDependencies": {
+    "@types/express": "^5.0.0",
+    "@types/express-serve-static-core": "^5.0.0",
+    "@types/supertest": "^6.0.2",
+    "supertest": "^7.0.0",
+    "tsx": "^4.19.2",
+    "typescript": "^5.7.3",
+    "vitest": "^3.0.5"
+  }
+}
diff --git a/server/src/__tests__/health.test.ts b/server/src/__tests__/health.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..5583955f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/__tests__/health.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,15 @@
+import { describe, it, expect } from "vitest";
+import express from "express";
+import request from "supertest";
+import { healthRoutes } from "../routes/health.js";
+
+describe("GET /health", () => {
+  const app = express();
+  app.use("/health", healthRoutes());
+
+  it("returns 200 with status ok", async () => {
+    const res = await request(app).get("/health");
+    expect(res.status).toBe(200);
+    expect(res.body).toEqual({ status: "ok" });
+  });
+});
diff --git a/server/src/app.ts b/server/src/app.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..719fea74
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/app.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,42 @@
+import express, { Router } from "express";
+import path from "node:path";
+import { fileURLToPath } from "node:url";
+import type { Db } from "@paperclip/db";
+import { httpLogger, errorHandler } from "./middleware/index.js";
+import { healthRoutes } from "./routes/health.js";
+import { agentRoutes } from "./routes/agents.js";
+import { projectRoutes } from "./routes/projects.js";
+import { issueRoutes } from "./routes/issues.js";
+import { goalRoutes } from "./routes/goals.js";
+import { activityRoutes } from "./routes/activity.js";
+
+export function createApp(db: Db, opts: { serveUi: boolean }) {
+  const app = express();
+
+  app.use(express.json());
+  app.use(httpLogger);
+
+  // Mount API routes
+  const api = Router();
+  api.use("/health", healthRoutes());
+  api.use("/agents", agentRoutes(db));
+  api.use("/projects", projectRoutes(db));
+  api.use("/issues", issueRoutes(db));
+  api.use("/goals", goalRoutes(db));
+  api.use("/activity", activityRoutes(db));
+  app.use("/api", api);
+
+  // SPA fallback for serving the UI build
+  if (opts.serveUi) {
+    const __dirname = path.dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url));
+    const uiDist = path.resolve(__dirname, "../../ui/dist");
+    app.use(express.static(uiDist));
+    app.get("*", (_req, res) => {
+      res.sendFile(path.join(uiDist, "index.html"));
+    });
+  }
+
+  app.use(errorHandler);
+
+  return app;
+}
diff --git a/server/src/config.ts b/server/src/config.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..1875815d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/config.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+export interface Config {
+  port: number;
+  databaseUrl: string;
+  serveUi: boolean;
+}
+
+export function loadConfig(): Config {
+  const databaseUrl = process.env.DATABASE_URL;
+  if (!databaseUrl) throw new Error("DATABASE_URL is required");
+
+  return {
+    port: Number(process.env.PORT) || 3100,
+    databaseUrl,
+    serveUi: process.env.SERVE_UI === "true",
+  };
+}
diff --git a/server/src/index.ts b/server/src/index.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..3f4cea99
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/index.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+import { createDb } from "@paperclip/db";
+import { createApp } from "./app.js";
+import { loadConfig } from "./config.js";
+import { logger } from "./middleware/logger.js";
+
+const config = loadConfig();
+const db = createDb(config.databaseUrl);
+const app = createApp(db, { serveUi: config.serveUi });
+
+app.listen(config.port, () => {
+  logger.info(`Server listening on :${config.port}`);
+});
diff --git a/server/src/middleware/error-handler.ts b/server/src/middleware/error-handler.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..cb4d4fbf
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/middleware/error-handler.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,18 @@
+import type { Request, Response, NextFunction } from "express";
+import { ZodError } from "zod";
+import { logger } from "./logger.js";
+
+export function errorHandler(
+  err: unknown,
+  _req: Request,
+  res: Response,
+  _next: NextFunction,
+) {
+  if (err instanceof ZodError) {
+    res.status(400).json({ error: "Validation error", details: err.errors });
+    return;
+  }
+
+  logger.error(err, "Unhandled error");
+  res.status(500).json({ error: "Internal server error" });
+}
diff --git a/server/src/middleware/index.ts b/server/src/middleware/index.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..5988addd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/middleware/index.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+export { logger, httpLogger } from "./logger.js";
+export { errorHandler } from "./error-handler.js";
+export { validate } from "./validate.js";
diff --git a/server/src/middleware/logger.ts b/server/src/middleware/logger.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..5f2fbea8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/middleware/logger.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+import pino from "pino";
+import { pinoHttp } from "pino-http";
+
+export const logger = pino();
+export const httpLogger = pinoHttp({ logger });
diff --git a/server/src/middleware/validate.ts b/server/src/middleware/validate.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..4acb53d0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/middleware/validate.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+import type { Request, Response, NextFunction } from "express";
+import type { ZodSchema } from "zod";
+
+export function validate(schema: ZodSchema) {
+  return (req: Request, _res: Response, next: NextFunction) => {
+    req.body = schema.parse(req.body);
+    next();
+  };
+}
diff --git a/server/src/routes/activity.ts b/server/src/routes/activity.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..0f614023
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/routes/activity.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,35 @@
+import { Router } from "express";
+import { z } from "zod";
+import type { Db } from "@paperclip/db";
+import { validate } from "../middleware/validate.js";
+import { activityService } from "../services/activity.js";
+
+const createActivitySchema = z.object({
+  action: z.string().min(1),
+  entityType: z.string().min(1),
+  entityId: z.string().uuid(),
+  agentId: z.string().uuid().optional().nullable(),
+  details: z.record(z.unknown()).optional().nullable(),
+});
+
+export function activityRoutes(db: Db) {
+  const router = Router();
+  const svc = activityService(db);
+
+  router.get("/", async (req, res) => {
+    const filters = {
+      agentId: req.query.agentId as string | undefined,
+      entityType: req.query.entityType as string | undefined,
+      entityId: req.query.entityId as string | undefined,
+    };
+    const result = await svc.list(filters);
+    res.json(result);
+  });
+
+  router.post("/", validate(createActivitySchema), async (req, res) => {
+    const event = await svc.create(req.body);
+    res.status(201).json(event);
+  });
+
+  return router;
+}
diff --git a/server/src/routes/agents.ts b/server/src/routes/agents.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..0d3184b9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/routes/agents.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,52 @@
+import { Router } from "express";
+import type { Db } from "@paperclip/db";
+import { createAgentSchema, updateAgentSchema } from "@paperclip/shared";
+import { validate } from "../middleware/validate.js";
+import { agentService } from "../services/agents.js";
+
+export function agentRoutes(db: Db) {
+  const router = Router();
+  const svc = agentService(db);
+
+  router.get("/", async (_req, res) => {
+    const result = await svc.list();
+    res.json(result);
+  });
+
+  router.get("/:id", async (req, res) => {
+    const id = req.params.id as string;
+    const agent = await svc.getById(id);
+    if (!agent) {
+      res.status(404).json({ error: "Agent not found" });
+      return;
+    }
+    res.json(agent);
+  });
+
+  router.post("/", validate(createAgentSchema), async (req, res) => {
+    const agent = await svc.create(req.body);
+    res.status(201).json(agent);
+  });
+
+  router.patch("/:id", validate(updateAgentSchema), async (req, res) => {
+    const id = req.params.id as string;
+    const agent = await svc.update(id, req.body);
+    if (!agent) {
+      res.status(404).json({ error: "Agent not found" });
+      return;
+    }
+    res.json(agent);
+  });
+
+  router.delete("/:id", async (req, res) => {
+    const id = req.params.id as string;
+    const agent = await svc.remove(id);
+    if (!agent) {
+      res.status(404).json({ error: "Agent not found" });
+      return;
+    }
+    res.json(agent);
+  });
+
+  return router;
+}
diff --git a/server/src/routes/goals.ts b/server/src/routes/goals.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..e673235d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/routes/goals.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,52 @@
+import { Router } from "express";
+import type { Db } from "@paperclip/db";
+import { createGoalSchema, updateGoalSchema } from "@paperclip/shared";
+import { validate } from "../middleware/validate.js";
+import { goalService } from "../services/goals.js";
+
+export function goalRoutes(db: Db) {
+  const router = Router();
+  const svc = goalService(db);
+
+  router.get("/", async (_req, res) => {
+    const result = await svc.list();
+    res.json(result);
+  });
+
+  router.get("/:id", async (req, res) => {
+    const id = req.params.id as string;
+    const goal = await svc.getById(id);
+    if (!goal) {
+      res.status(404).json({ error: "Goal not found" });
+      return;
+    }
+    res.json(goal);
+  });
+
+  router.post("/", validate(createGoalSchema), async (req, res) => {
+    const goal = await svc.create(req.body);
+    res.status(201).json(goal);
+  });
+
+  router.patch("/:id", validate(updateGoalSchema), async (req, res) => {
+    const id = req.params.id as string;
+    const goal = await svc.update(id, req.body);
+    if (!goal) {
+      res.status(404).json({ error: "Goal not found" });
+      return;
+    }
+    res.json(goal);
+  });
+
+  router.delete("/:id", async (req, res) => {
+    const id = req.params.id as string;
+    const goal = await svc.remove(id);
+    if (!goal) {
+      res.status(404).json({ error: "Goal not found" });
+      return;
+    }
+    res.json(goal);
+  });
+
+  return router;
+}
diff --git a/server/src/routes/health.ts b/server/src/routes/health.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..6a70ae2b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/routes/health.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,11 @@
+import { Router } from "express";
+
+export function healthRoutes() {
+  const router = Router();
+
+  router.get("/", (_req, res) => {
+    res.json({ status: "ok" });
+  });
+
+  return router;
+}
diff --git a/server/src/routes/index.ts b/server/src/routes/index.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..a78ecd2a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/routes/index.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+export { healthRoutes } from "./health.js";
+export { agentRoutes } from "./agents.js";
+export { projectRoutes } from "./projects.js";
+export { issueRoutes } from "./issues.js";
+export { goalRoutes } from "./goals.js";
+export { activityRoutes } from "./activity.js";
diff --git a/server/src/routes/issues.ts b/server/src/routes/issues.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..04a33e9d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/routes/issues.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,52 @@
+import { Router } from "express";
+import type { Db } from "@paperclip/db";
+import { createIssueSchema, updateIssueSchema } from "@paperclip/shared";
+import { validate } from "../middleware/validate.js";
+import { issueService } from "../services/issues.js";
+
+export function issueRoutes(db: Db) {
+  const router = Router();
+  const svc = issueService(db);
+
+  router.get("/", async (_req, res) => {
+    const result = await svc.list();
+    res.json(result);
+  });
+
+  router.get("/:id", async (req, res) => {
+    const id = req.params.id as string;
+    const issue = await svc.getById(id);
+    if (!issue) {
+      res.status(404).json({ error: "Issue not found" });
+      return;
+    }
+    res.json(issue);
+  });
+
+  router.post("/", validate(createIssueSchema), async (req, res) => {
+    const issue = await svc.create(req.body);
+    res.status(201).json(issue);
+  });
+
+  router.patch("/:id", validate(updateIssueSchema), async (req, res) => {
+    const id = req.params.id as string;
+    const issue = await svc.update(id, req.body);
+    if (!issue) {
+      res.status(404).json({ error: "Issue not found" });
+      return;
+    }
+    res.json(issue);
+  });
+
+  router.delete("/:id", async (req, res) => {
+    const id = req.params.id as string;
+    const issue = await svc.remove(id);
+    if (!issue) {
+      res.status(404).json({ error: "Issue not found" });
+      return;
+    }
+    res.json(issue);
+  });
+
+  return router;
+}
diff --git a/server/src/routes/projects.ts b/server/src/routes/projects.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..63ab47e7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/routes/projects.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,52 @@
+import { Router } from "express";
+import type { Db } from "@paperclip/db";
+import { createProjectSchema, updateProjectSchema } from "@paperclip/shared";
+import { validate } from "../middleware/validate.js";
+import { projectService } from "../services/projects.js";
+
+export function projectRoutes(db: Db) {
+  const router = Router();
+  const svc = projectService(db);
+
+  router.get("/", async (_req, res) => {
+    const result = await svc.list();
+    res.json(result);
+  });
+
+  router.get("/:id", async (req, res) => {
+    const id = req.params.id as string;
+    const project = await svc.getById(id);
+    if (!project) {
+      res.status(404).json({ error: "Project not found" });
+      return;
+    }
+    res.json(project);
+  });
+
+  router.post("/", validate(createProjectSchema), async (req, res) => {
+    const project = await svc.create(req.body);
+    res.status(201).json(project);
+  });
+
+  router.patch("/:id", validate(updateProjectSchema), async (req, res) => {
+    const id = req.params.id as string;
+    const project = await svc.update(id, req.body);
+    if (!project) {
+      res.status(404).json({ error: "Project not found" });
+      return;
+    }
+    res.json(project);
+  });
+
+  router.delete("/:id", async (req, res) => {
+    const id = req.params.id as string;
+    const project = await svc.remove(id);
+    if (!project) {
+      res.status(404).json({ error: "Project not found" });
+      return;
+    }
+    res.json(project);
+  });
+
+  return router;
+}
diff --git a/server/src/services/activity.ts b/server/src/services/activity.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..4f59b652
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/services/activity.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,42 @@
+import { eq, and, desc } from "drizzle-orm";
+import type { Db } from "@paperclip/db";
+import { activityLog } from "@paperclip/db";
+
+export interface ActivityFilters {
+  agentId?: string;
+  entityType?: string;
+  entityId?: string;
+}
+
+export function activityService(db: Db) {
+  return {
+    list: (filters?: ActivityFilters) => {
+      const conditions = [];
+
+      if (filters?.agentId) {
+        conditions.push(eq(activityLog.agentId, filters.agentId));
+      }
+      if (filters?.entityType) {
+        conditions.push(eq(activityLog.entityType, filters.entityType));
+      }
+      if (filters?.entityId) {
+        conditions.push(eq(activityLog.entityId, filters.entityId));
+      }
+
+      const query = db.select().from(activityLog);
+
+      if (conditions.length > 0) {
+        return query.where(and(...conditions)).orderBy(desc(activityLog.createdAt));
+      }
+
+      return query.orderBy(desc(activityLog.createdAt));
+    },
+
+    create: (data: typeof activityLog.$inferInsert) =>
+      db
+        .insert(activityLog)
+        .values(data)
+        .returning()
+        .then((rows) => rows[0]),
+  };
+}
diff --git a/server/src/services/agents.ts b/server/src/services/agents.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..ce3a0b67
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/services/agents.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,38 @@
+import { eq } from "drizzle-orm";
+import type { Db } from "@paperclip/db";
+import { agents } from "@paperclip/db";
+
+export function agentService(db: Db) {
+  return {
+    list: () => db.select().from(agents),
+
+    getById: (id: string) =>
+      db
+        .select()
+        .from(agents)
+        .where(eq(agents.id, id))
+        .then((rows) => rows[0] ?? null),
+
+    create: (data: typeof agents.$inferInsert) =>
+      db
+        .insert(agents)
+        .values(data)
+        .returning()
+        .then((rows) => rows[0]),
+
+    update: (id: string, data: Partial<typeof agents.$inferInsert>) =>
+      db
+        .update(agents)
+        .set({ ...data, updatedAt: new Date() })
+        .where(eq(agents.id, id))
+        .returning()
+        .then((rows) => rows[0] ?? null),
+
+    remove: (id: string) =>
+      db
+        .delete(agents)
+        .where(eq(agents.id, id))
+        .returning()
+        .then((rows) => rows[0] ?? null),
+  };
+}
diff --git a/server/src/services/goals.ts b/server/src/services/goals.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..32c5e0a0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/services/goals.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,38 @@
+import { eq } from "drizzle-orm";
+import type { Db } from "@paperclip/db";
+import { goals } from "@paperclip/db";
+
+export function goalService(db: Db) {
+  return {
+    list: () => db.select().from(goals),
+
+    getById: (id: string) =>
+      db
+        .select()
+        .from(goals)
+        .where(eq(goals.id, id))
+        .then((rows) => rows[0] ?? null),
+
+    create: (data: typeof goals.$inferInsert) =>
+      db
+        .insert(goals)
+        .values(data)
+        .returning()
+        .then((rows) => rows[0]),
+
+    update: (id: string, data: Partial<typeof goals.$inferInsert>) =>
+      db
+        .update(goals)
+        .set({ ...data, updatedAt: new Date() })
+        .where(eq(goals.id, id))
+        .returning()
+        .then((rows) => rows[0] ?? null),
+
+    remove: (id: string) =>
+      db
+        .delete(goals)
+        .where(eq(goals.id, id))
+        .returning()
+        .then((rows) => rows[0] ?? null),
+  };
+}
diff --git a/server/src/services/index.ts b/server/src/services/index.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..ff6ab38e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/services/index.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+export { agentService } from "./agents.js";
+export { projectService } from "./projects.js";
+export { issueService } from "./issues.js";
+export { goalService } from "./goals.js";
+export { activityService, type ActivityFilters } from "./activity.js";
diff --git a/server/src/services/issues.ts b/server/src/services/issues.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..5a0fba53
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/services/issues.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,38 @@
+import { eq } from "drizzle-orm";
+import type { Db } from "@paperclip/db";
+import { issues } from "@paperclip/db";
+
+export function issueService(db: Db) {
+  return {
+    list: () => db.select().from(issues),
+
+    getById: (id: string) =>
+      db
+        .select()
+        .from(issues)
+        .where(eq(issues.id, id))
+        .then((rows) => rows[0] ?? null),
+
+    create: (data: typeof issues.$inferInsert) =>
+      db
+        .insert(issues)
+        .values(data)
+        .returning()
+        .then((rows) => rows[0]),
+
+    update: (id: string, data: Partial<typeof issues.$inferInsert>) =>
+      db
+        .update(issues)
+        .set({ ...data, updatedAt: new Date() })
+        .where(eq(issues.id, id))
+        .returning()
+        .then((rows) => rows[0] ?? null),
+
+    remove: (id: string) =>
+      db
+        .delete(issues)
+        .where(eq(issues.id, id))
+        .returning()
+        .then((rows) => rows[0] ?? null),
+  };
+}
diff --git a/server/src/services/projects.ts b/server/src/services/projects.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..ff1608c3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/services/projects.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,38 @@
+import { eq } from "drizzle-orm";
+import type { Db } from "@paperclip/db";
+import { projects } from "@paperclip/db";
+
+export function projectService(db: Db) {
+  return {
+    list: () => db.select().from(projects),
+
+    getById: (id: string) =>
+      db
+        .select()
+        .from(projects)
+        .where(eq(projects.id, id))
+        .then((rows) => rows[0] ?? null),
+
+    create: (data: typeof projects.$inferInsert) =>
+      db
+        .insert(projects)
+        .values(data)
+        .returning()
+        .then((rows) => rows[0]),
+
+    update: (id: string, data: Partial<typeof projects.$inferInsert>) =>
+      db
+        .update(projects)
+        .set({ ...data, updatedAt: new Date() })
+        .where(eq(projects.id, id))
+        .returning()
+        .then((rows) => rows[0] ?? null),
+
+    remove: (id: string) =>
+      db
+        .delete(projects)
+        .where(eq(projects.id, id))
+        .returning()
+        .then((rows) => rows[0] ?? null),
+  };
+}
diff --git a/server/tsconfig.json b/server/tsconfig.json
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..e4600622
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/tsconfig.json
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+{
+  "extends": "../tsconfig.json",
+  "compilerOptions": {
+    "outDir": "dist",
+    "rootDir": "src"
+  },
+  "include": ["src"]
+}
diff --git a/server/vitest.config.ts b/server/vitest.config.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..f624398e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/vitest.config.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,7 @@
+import { defineConfig } from "vitest/config";
+
+export default defineConfig({
+  test: {
+    environment: "node",
+  },
+});