diff --git a/tests/e2e/onboarding.spec.ts b/tests/e2e/onboarding.spec.ts
index a89fe114..454a9d64 100644
--- a/tests/e2e/onboarding.spec.ts
+++ b/tests/e2e/onboarding.spec.ts
@@ -1,142 +1,65 @@
 import { test, expect } from "@playwright/test";
 
 /**
- * E2E: Onboarding wizard flow (skip_llm mode).
+ * E2E: Nexus onboarding wizard — single-step root directory flow.
  *
- * Walks through the 4-step OnboardingWizard:
- *   Step 1 — Name your company
- *   Step 2 — Create your first agent (adapter selection + config)
- *   Step 3 — Give it something to do (task creation)
- *   Step 4 — Ready to launch (summary + open issue)
- *
- * By default this runs in skip_llm mode: we do NOT assert that an LLM
- * heartbeat fires. Set PAPERCLIP_E2E_SKIP_LLM=false to enable LLM-dependent
- * assertions (requires a valid ANTHROPIC_API_KEY).
+ * Verifies:
+ *   ONBD-10 — Vite alias intercepts, NexusOnboardingWizard renders
+ *   ONBD-11 — Single root-directory input only, no multi-step flow
+ *   ONBD-12 — No corporate placeholder text visible
  */
 
-const SKIP_LLM = process.env.PAPERCLIP_E2E_SKIP_LLM !== "false";
-
-const COMPANY_NAME = `E2E-Test-${Date.now()}`;
-const AGENT_NAME = "CEO";
-const TASK_TITLE = "E2E test task";
-
-test.describe("Onboarding wizard", () => {
-  test("completes full wizard flow", async ({ page }) => {
+test.describe("Nexus onboarding wizard", () => {
+  test("single-step flow: root dir input, no corporate strings, lands on dashboard", async ({ page }) => {
     await page.goto("/");
 
-    const wizardHeading = page.locator("h3", { hasText: "Name your company" });
-    const newCompanyBtn = page.getByRole("button", { name: "New Company" });
+    // ONBD-10 + ONBD-11: Nexus wizard renders with single-step heading
+    const heading = page.locator("h1", { hasText: "Welcome to Nexus" });
+    await expect(heading).toBeVisible({ timeout: 15_000 });
 
-    await expect(
-      wizardHeading.or(newCompanyBtn)
-    ).toBeVisible({ timeout: 15_000 });
+    // ONBD-11: Only a root directory input — no multi-step navigation
+    await expect(page.getByRole("button", { name: "Next" })).toHaveCount(0);
+    await expect(page.locator("h3", { hasText: "Name your company" })).toHaveCount(0);
+    await expect(page.locator("h3", { hasText: "Create your first agent" })).toHaveCount(0);
+    await expect(page.locator("h3", { hasText: "Give it something to do" })).toHaveCount(0);
+    await expect(page.locator("h3", { hasText: "Ready to launch" })).toHaveCount(0);
 
-    if (await newCompanyBtn.isVisible()) {
-      await newCompanyBtn.click();
-    }
+    // ONBD-12: No corporate placeholder text
+    await expect(page.getByText("Acme Corp")).toHaveCount(0);
+    await expect(page.getByText("Company name")).toHaveCount(0);
+    await expect(page.getByText("What is this company trying to achieve?")).toHaveCount(0);
 
-    await expect(wizardHeading).toBeVisible({ timeout: 5_000 });
+    // Fill root directory and submit
+    const rootDirInput = page.locator('input[placeholder="~/projects/my-project"]');
+    await expect(rootDirInput).toBeVisible();
+    await rootDirInput.fill("/tmp/nexus-e2e-test");
 
-    const companyNameInput = page.locator('input[placeholder="Acme Corp"]');
-    await companyNameInput.fill(COMPANY_NAME);
+    await page.getByRole("button", { name: "Get Started" }).click();
 
-    const nextButton = page.getByRole("button", { name: "Next" });
-    await nextButton.click();
-
-    await expect(
-      page.locator("h3", { hasText: "Create your first agent" })
-    ).toBeVisible({ timeout: 10_000 });
-
-    const agentNameInput = page.locator('input[placeholder="CEO"]');
-    await expect(agentNameInput).toHaveValue(AGENT_NAME);
-
-    await expect(
-      page.locator("button", { hasText: "Claude Code" }).locator("..")
-    ).toBeVisible();
-
-    await page.getByRole("button", { name: "More Agent Adapter Types" }).click();
-    await expect(page.getByRole("button", { name: "Process" })).toHaveCount(0);
-
-    await page.getByRole("button", { name: "Next" }).click();
-
-    await expect(
-      page.locator("h3", { hasText: "Give it something to do" })
-    ).toBeVisible({ timeout: 10_000 });
-
-    const taskTitleInput = page.locator(
-      'input[placeholder="e.g. Research competitor pricing"]'
-    );
-    await taskTitleInput.clear();
-    await taskTitleInput.fill(TASK_TITLE);
-
-    await page.getByRole("button", { name: "Next" }).click();
-
-    await expect(
-      page.locator("h3", { hasText: "Ready to launch" })
-    ).toBeVisible({ timeout: 10_000 });
-
-    await expect(page.locator("text=" + COMPANY_NAME)).toBeVisible();
-    await expect(page.locator("text=" + AGENT_NAME)).toBeVisible();
-    await expect(page.locator("text=" + TASK_TITLE)).toBeVisible();
-
-    await page.getByRole("button", { name: "Create & Open Issue" }).click();
-
-    await expect(page).toHaveURL(/\/issues\//, { timeout: 10_000 });
+    // Should navigate to dashboard
+    await expect(page).toHaveURL(/\/dashboard/, { timeout: 30_000 });
 
+    // Verify workspace and agents created via API
     const baseUrl = page.url().split("/").slice(0, 3).join("/");
 
     const companiesRes = await page.request.get(`${baseUrl}/api/companies`);
     expect(companiesRes.ok()).toBe(true);
     const companies = await companiesRes.json();
-    const company = companies.find(
-      (c: { name: string }) => c.name === COMPANY_NAME
-    );
-    expect(company).toBeTruthy();
+    expect(companies.length).toBeGreaterThan(0);
 
+    const companyId = companies[0].id;
     const agentsRes = await page.request.get(
-      `${baseUrl}/api/companies/${company.id}/agents`
+      `${baseUrl}/api/companies/${companyId}/agents`
     );
     expect(agentsRes.ok()).toBe(true);
     const agents = await agentsRes.json();
-    const ceoAgent = agents.find(
-      (a: { name: string }) => a.name === AGENT_NAME
-    );
-    expect(ceoAgent).toBeTruthy();
-    expect(ceoAgent.role).toBe("ceo");
-    expect(ceoAgent.adapterType).not.toBe("process");
 
-    const instructionsBundleRes = await page.request.get(
-      `${baseUrl}/api/agents/${ceoAgent.id}/instructions-bundle?companyId=${company.id}`
-    );
-    expect(instructionsBundleRes.ok()).toBe(true);
-    const instructionsBundle = await instructionsBundleRes.json();
+    // PM agent (role: ceo, name: "Project Manager") and Engineer created
     expect(
-      instructionsBundle.files.map((file: { path: string }) => file.path).sort()
-    ).toEqual(["AGENTS.md", "HEARTBEAT.md", "SOUL.md", "TOOLS.md"]);
-
-    const issuesRes = await page.request.get(
-      `${baseUrl}/api/companies/${company.id}/issues`
-    );
-    expect(issuesRes.ok()).toBe(true);
-    const issues = await issuesRes.json();
-    const task = issues.find(
-      (i: { title: string }) => i.title === TASK_TITLE
-    );
-    expect(task).toBeTruthy();
-    expect(task.assigneeAgentId).toBe(ceoAgent.id);
-    expect(task.description).toContain(
-      "You are the CEO. You set the direction for the company."
-    );
-    expect(task.description).not.toContain("github.com/paperclipai/companies");
-
-    if (!SKIP_LLM) {
-      await expect(async () => {
-        const res = await page.request.get(
-          `${baseUrl}/api/issues/${task.id}`
-        );
-        const issue = await res.json();
-        expect(["in_progress", "done"]).toContain(issue.status);
-      }).toPass({ timeout: 120_000, intervals: [5_000] });
-    }
+      agents.some((a: { name: string }) => a.name === "Project Manager")
+    ).toBe(true);
+    expect(
+      agents.some((a: { name: string }) => a.name === "Engineer")
+    ).toBe(true);
   });
 });