diff --git a/.github/workflows/publish-gem.yml b/.github/workflows/publish-gem.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5ebe916
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/publish-gem.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,92 @@
+name: Publish gem
+
+on:
+  workflow_dispatch:
+    inputs:
+      tag:
+        description: Existing release tag to publish or retry (for example v13.1.1)
+        required: true
+        type: string
+
+permissions:
+  contents: read
+
+concurrency:
+  group: publish-gem-${{ inputs.tag }}
+  cancel-in-progress: false
+
+env:
+  RELEASE_TAG: ${{ inputs.tag }}
+
+jobs:
+  verify:
+    if: github.repository == 'appium/ruby_console'
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    outputs:
+      gem_filename: ${{ steps.artifact.outputs.gem-filename }}
+    steps:
+      - name: Validate tag syntax
+        shell: bash
+        run: |
+          if [[ ! "$RELEASE_TAG" =~ ^v[0-9]+\.[0-9]+\.[0-9]+(-[0-9A-Za-z]+([.-][0-9A-Za-z]+)*)?$ ]]; then
+            echo 'Expected a release tag such as v13.1.1 or v13.2.0-rc.1' >&2
+            exit 1
+          fi
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v7
+        with:
+          ref: refs/tags/${{ env.RELEASE_TAG }}
+          fetch-depth: 0
+          persist-credentials: false
+      - name: Verify release commit belongs to master
+        run: git merge-base --is-ancestor HEAD origin/master
+      - uses: ruby/setup-ruby@v1
+        with:
+          ruby-version: '4.0'
+          bundler-cache: true
+      # Build before tools/tests can generate or update local files.
+      - name: Build gem from the tagged checkout
+        run: bundle exec rake build
+      - name: Run checks on the release commit
+        run: |
+          bundle exec rake rubocop
+          bundle exec ruby -Ilib bin/arc version
+      - name: Validate the built gem
+        id: package
+        uses: appium/appium-workflows/.github/actions/ruby-release-validate@b9358466aa945baa7afa4d8f177d9fa4f4515bc0
+        with:
+          gem-name: appium_console
+          version-file: lib/appium_console/version.rb
+          tag: ${{ env.RELEASE_TAG }}
+      - name: Record artifact filename for the publishing job
+        id: artifact
+        env:
+          VERIFIED_GEM_PATH: ${{ steps.package.outputs.gem-path }}
+        run: echo "gem-filename=$(basename "$VERIFIED_GEM_PATH")" >> "$GITHUB_OUTPUT"
+      - uses: actions/upload-artifact@v4
+        with:
+          name: release-gem
+          path: ${{ steps.package.outputs.gem-path }}
+          if-no-files-found: error
+          retention-days: 14
+
+  publish:
+    needs: verify
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    environment: rubygems
+    permissions:
+      contents: read
+      id-token: write
+    steps:
+      - uses: ruby/setup-ruby@v1
+        with:
+          ruby-version: '4.0'
+      - uses: actions/download-artifact@v4
+        with:
+          name: release-gem
+          path: pkg
+      - name: Authenticate with RubyGems Trusted Publishing
+        uses: rubygems/configure-rubygems-credentials@daab0479595bcc124493903b3df17273d86e073f
+      - name: Publish the verified gem
+        env:
+          GEM_PATH_TO_PUBLISH: pkg/${{ needs.verify.outputs.gem_filename }}
+        run: gem push --host https://rubygems.org "$GEM_PATH_TO_PUBLISH"
diff --git a/.github/workflows/release-please.yml b/.github/workflows/release-please.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..60a5642
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/release-please.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,55 @@
+name: Release Please
+
+on:
+  push:
+    branches: [master]
+  workflow_dispatch:
+
+permissions:
+  contents: read
+
+concurrency:
+  group: release-please
+  cancel-in-progress: false
+
+jobs:
+  release:
+    if: github.repository == 'appium/ruby_console'
+    permissions:
+      contents: write
+      pull-requests: write
+      issues: write
+      actions: write
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    env:
+      TZ: UTC
+    steps:
+      - name: Update release PR or create GitHub Release
+        id: release
+        uses: googleapis/release-please-action@5c625bfb5d1ff62eadeeb3772007f7f66fdcf071 # v4
+        with:
+          token: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+          target-branch: master
+          config-file: release-please-config.json
+          manifest-file: .release-please-manifest.json
+
+      # GITHUB_TOKEN does not automatically start downstream workflows.
+      # Explicit dispatch runs checks on the release PR commit without a bot key.
+      - name: Run release PR checks
+        if: steps.release.outputs.prs_created == 'true'
+        env:
+          GH_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+          GH_REPO: ${{ github.repository }}
+          RELEASE_PR: ${{ steps.release.outputs.pr }}
+        run: |
+          branch=$(jq -er '.headBranchName | select(type == "string" and length > 0)' <<< "$RELEASE_PR")
+          for workflow in release-validation.yml; do
+            gh workflow run "$workflow" --ref "$branch"
+          done
+      - name: Publish the new release
+        if: steps.release.outputs.release_created == 'true'
+        env:
+          GH_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+          GH_REPO: ${{ github.repository }}
+          RELEASE_TAG: ${{ steps.release.outputs.tag_name }}
+        run: gh workflow run publish-gem.yml --ref master -f "tag=$RELEASE_TAG"
diff --git a/.github/workflows/release-validation.yml b/.github/workflows/release-validation.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..672672f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/release-validation.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,33 @@
+name: Release validation
+
+on:
+  workflow_dispatch:
+  pull_request:
+  push:
+    branches: [master]
+
+permissions:
+  contents: read
+
+jobs:
+  package:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    steps:
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v7
+        with:
+          persist-credentials: false
+      - uses: ruby/setup-ruby@v1
+        with:
+          ruby-version: '4.0'
+          bundler-cache: true
+      - name: Check console
+        run: |
+          bundle exec rake rubocop
+          bundle exec ruby -Ilib bin/arc version
+      - name: Build gem
+        run: bundle exec rake build
+      - name: Validate built gem
+        uses: appium/appium-workflows/.github/actions/ruby-release-validate@b9358466aa945baa7afa4d8f177d9fa4f4515bc0
+        with:
+          gem-name: appium_console
+          version-file: lib/appium_console/version.rb
diff --git a/.release-please-manifest.json b/.release-please-manifest.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..34a3350
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.release-please-manifest.json
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+{
+  ".": "4.2.0"
+}
diff --git a/.rubocop.yml b/.rubocop.yml
index f999288..3141405 100644
--- a/.rubocop.yml
+++ b/.rubocop.yml
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 AllCops:
   TargetRubyVersion: 3.1
-Metrics/LineLength:
+Layout/LineLength:
   Max: 128
 Metrics/MethodLength:
   Enabled: false
diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..be12a15
--- /dev/null
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+# Changelog
+
+Historical commit-level notes through 4.2.0 are in [release_notes.md](release_notes.md).
+New entries are maintained by Release Please.
+
+## [4.2.0] - 2025-01-25
+
+- See the historical release notes for this release.
diff --git a/Gemfile b/Gemfile
index 604eed8..7a34208 100644
--- a/Gemfile
+++ b/Gemfile
@@ -1,6 +1,5 @@
 source 'https://rubygems.org'
 gemspec
 
-gem 'appium_thor', '~> 2.0'
 gem 'rake', '~> 13.0'
 gem 'rubocop', '1.90.0'
diff --git a/RELEASING.md b/RELEASING.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2d0028c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/RELEASING.md
@@ -0,0 +1,167 @@
+# Releasing appium_console
+
+Release Please prepares the release PR, version, changelog, tag, and GitHub Release.
+GitHub Actions builds and tests the tagged code, then publishes that exact gem to
+RubyGems.org using Trusted Publishing. `appium_thor` is no longer required.
+
+After the one-time setup, the maintainer's normal release action is to review and
+merge the release PR. There is no local version bump, tag push, or gem push.
+
+## One-time setup
+
+1. In repository **Settings → Actions → General → Workflow permissions**, enable
+   **Allow GitHub Actions to create and approve pull requests** (the organization
+   policy must permit it). Workflows declare their own permissions. Release Please
+   uses the built-in `GITHUB_TOKEN`; no GitHub App, PAT, or new GitHub secret is needed.
+2. Keep the normal branch protection/rulesets on `master`. Require the `package` job from **Release validation** before merging
+   a release PR. Do not exempt the release bot from those merge checks. Its direct
+   writes are to the generated release PR branch and release tags, not master.
+3. Create the GitHub Actions environment `rubygems`. Permit release tags (`v*`) and
+   the `master` branch (for automated publishing and retries). Add a required reviewer only if a
+   separate approval for each publication is wanted; otherwise merging the release
+   PR is the normal human decision.
+4. As an owner of `appium_console` on RubyGems.org, configure a Trusted Publisher:
+   - Repository owner: `appium`
+   - Repository name: `ruby_console`
+   - Workflow filename: `publish-gem.yml`
+   - Environment: `rubygems`
+5. Merge the migration after its CI passes. A push to master or a manual run of
+   **Release Please** updates the pending release PR. Configure the RubyGems
+   publisher before merging that first release PR.
+
+This follows the standard `GITHUB_TOKEN` and OIDC authentication used by Appium's
+Python client and XCUITest driver release workflows. Release Please explicitly
+uses `workflow_dispatch` to run the package validation
+workflow on the release PR branch, and **Publish gem** on master with the new tag.
+These events run with `GITHUB_TOKEN` without a separate bot credential. All workflow
+files must first be on master for dispatch to work.
+
+GitHub may also show approval-required `pull_request` runs for bot-created PRs.
+The dispatched package checks do not require that approval. If additional
+PR-event-only checks are made required, adapt their triggers as well.
+
+No credentials, remote settings, tags, or releases are created by installing these
+files. Configure the RubyGems publisher before merging the first release PR.
+
+## Normal release
+
+1. Merge ordinary changes using Conventional Commit titles/messages. A `fix:`
+   produces a patch bump, `feat:` a minor bump, and a breaking-change marker such as
+   `feat!:` a major bump. Chore-only changes do not normally create a release PR.
+2. Release Please maintains a PR updating `lib/appium_console/version.rb`,
+   `.release-please-manifest.json`, and `CHANGELOG.md`. Its standard `x-release-please-date` annotation also updates
+   `Appium::Console::DATE` in the same PR. Wait for checks on the final PR commit.
+3. Review the version and release notes, then merge the PR when ready. If master
+   has advanced, require current checks before merging through the repository rules.
+4. Release Please creates `v<version>` and a GitHub Release, then dispatches
+   **Publish gem** with that tag. **Publish gem** verifies
+   that the tag is on master's history, builds the gem before test tools can modify local files, runs checks, and verifies
+   the tag, source version, manifest, changelog date, and packaged gem identity.
+5. Only a successful verification job uploads a gem for the separate publishing
+   job. That job has the OIDC permission, downloads the verified artifact, and uses
+   `gem push`. It does not rebuild the package or create another tag.
+
+A GitHub Release can exist before RubyGems publication succeeds. The **Publish gem**
+workflow result is the publication status; creating a GitHub Release alone does
+not mean the gem has been published.
+
+`release_notes.md` is retained as historical commit-level notes through 4.2.0.
+New release notes are generated in `CHANGELOG.md` and GitHub Releases. `DATE` is the
+release-preparation date recorded in that changelog, not the later RubyGems upload
+timestamp. No public version/date constant is removed.
+
+## Choosing a version or publishing an RC
+
+For a one-off explicit version, use Release Please's `Release-As: 13.2.0` footer in
+a commit included in the release, or the `release-as` package setting. If using the
+setting, remove it after the release so it does not keep forcing the same version.
+Review the generated PR instead of changing only VERSION independently of the
+manifest and changelog.
+
+For an RC, configure the root package with `"prerelease": true` and an explicit
+`"release-as": "13.2.0-rc.1"`. Release Please uses a SemVer tag such as
+`v13.2.0-rc.1`; RubyGems normalizes the gem version/filename to `13.2.0.pre.rc.1`.
+The release validator accepts that mapping. Use `rc.2`, etc. for further RCs.
+Before the stable release, remove the prerelease flag and explicit RC version (or
+set the intended stable release version explicitly). The default configuration
+is for stable releases from master, not a parallel prerelease branch.
+
+## Recovery
+
+- **Release PR has a date mismatch:** rerun **Release Please**. Alternatively, check
+  out its branch, use the shared validator’s `prepare-date` command described
+  below, and commit the date change. Do not edit the date to the upload day independently of the changelog.
+- **PR checks do not start:** inspect the **Run release PR checks** step, Actions
+  policy, and workflow permissions. Each dispatched workflow must exist on master.
+  Retry the affected workflow from the generated PR branch using **Run workflow**;
+  rerunning Release Please may not return an unchanged PR in its outputs.
+- **Tag/Release exists but publication failed:** correct external setup if needed
+  and rerun the failed workflow jobs. If dispatch itself failed, run
+  **Publish gem** from master with the existing tag; rerunning Release Please does
+  not necessarily emit an already-created release again. The verified artifact is kept for 14 days.
+  If it has expired, run **Publish gem** manually from master with the same existing
+  release tag; it rechecks and rebuilds that tag. This retry route is for releases
+  containing this publishing workflow, not older historical tags.
+- **RubyGems already has that version:** confirm the existing release before retrying.
+  The workflow deliberately does not treat every push failure as success. Published
+  versions cannot be overwritten. Do not move the tag or rebuild different source
+  under the same version; use a new release when a code fix is needed.
+- **A build or validation needs a source-code fix:** fix master and prepare a new
+  release. The retry path always checks out the original tag, so it cannot silently
+  publish newer master code under that tag.
+
+## Local checks without publication
+
+```sh
+bundle install
+bundle exec rake rubocop
+bundle exec ruby -Ilib bin/arc version
+bundle exec rake build
+```
+
+The CI workflows use the shared [ruby-release-validate Action](https://github.com/appium/appium-workflows/tree/b9358466aa945baa7afa4d8f177d9fa4f4515bc0/.github/actions/ruby-release-validate),
+pinned to commit `b9358466aa945baa7afa4d8f177d9fa4f4515bc0`. Its validation tests are maintained
+in that repository; this repository keeps its own application tests.
+
+For local metadata/package verification, clone the shared repository alongside
+this checkout, then run the same validator (adjust paths as needed):
+
+```sh
+git clone https://github.com/appium/appium-workflows.git ../appium-workflows
+git -C ../appium-workflows checkout b9358466aa945baa7afa4d8f177d9fa4f4515bc0
+ruby ../appium-workflows/.github/actions/ruby-release-validate/release.rb \
+  verify --root . --gem-name appium_console --version-file lib/appium_console/version.rb
+```
+
+Add `--tag v<version>` to verify a prospective tag. For date recovery, replace
+`verify` with `prepare-date` and omit `--tag`; it copies the changelog date into
+the local version file. Neither command pushes or publishes. If the shared
+checkout already exists, use it instead of cloning again.
+
+The Action returns an absolute `gem-path` for artifact upload. The workflow passes
+only the filename to the separate publishing job, which downloads the artifact
+into its own `pkg/` directory. The publishing workflow, `rubygems` environment,
+and Trusted Publisher registration remain in this repository.
+
+The repository bootstrap is pinned to the existing `v4.2.0` commit
+`2f63a20264d375195d49b975df974522605c54ce`, with manifest version `4.2.0`. This avoids
+replaying all historical changes on the first release. Once Release Please has
+made its first release, its bootstrap setting is ignored and can be removed.
+
+## References
+
+- [Release Please](https://github.com/googleapis/release-please)
+- [GitHub workflow triggering and token behavior](https://docs.github.com/en/actions/how-tos/write-workflows/choose-when-workflows-run/trigger-a-workflow)
+- [Appium Python client release workflow](https://github.com/appium/python-client/blob/master/.github/workflows/publish.yml)
+- [Appium XCUITest driver release workflow](https://github.com/appium/appium-xcuitest-driver/blob/master/.github/workflows/publish.js.yml)
+- [Manifest and prerelease configuration](https://github.com/googleapis/release-please/blob/main/docs/manifest-releaser.md)
+- [RubyGems Trusted Publishing](https://guides.rubygems.org/trusted-publishing/)
+- [RubyGems credentials Action](https://github.com/rubygems/configure-rubygems-credentials)
+
+The credentials Action is used instead of `rubygems/release-gem` because Release
+Please already owns the tag. Authentication plus `gem push` avoids invoking a
+second tool's tag-creation/release sequence.
+
+The runtime `thor` dependency is retained for the `arc` CLI. Only the separate
+`appium_thor` release tooling is removed. The old `thor spec` task referred to a
+nonexistent `spec/` directory; release helper tests now live in the shared Action repository.
diff --git a/Thorfile b/Thorfile
deleted file mode 100644
index ea3b5a8..0000000
--- a/Thorfile
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,20 +0,0 @@
-require 'appium_thor'
-
-Appium::Thor::Config.set do
-  gem_name     'appium_console'
-  github_owner 'appium'
-  github_name  'ruby_console'
-  version_file 'lib/appium_console/version.rb'
-end
-
-# Must use '::' otherwise Default will point to Thor::Sandbox::Default
-# Debug by calling Thor::Base.subclass_files via Pry
-#
-# https://github.com/erikhuda/thor/issues/484
-#
-class ::Default < Thor
-  desc 'spec', 'Run RSpec tests'
-  def spec
-    exec 'rspec spec'
-  end
-end
diff --git a/appium_console.gemspec b/appium_console.gemspec
index 37e0452..10aee6c 100644
--- a/appium_console.gemspec
+++ b/appium_console.gemspec
@@ -29,4 +29,10 @@ Gem::Specification.new do |s|
   s.executables = ['arc']
   s.files = `git ls-files`.split "\n"
   s.metadata['rubygems_mfa_required'] = 'true'
+  # Keep release automation out of the published package.
+  s.files.reject! do |file|
+    file.start_with?('.github/', 'script/', 'test/release/') ||
+      %w[RELEASING.md release-please-config.json .release-please-manifest.json].include?(file)
+  end
+
 end
diff --git a/lib/appium_console/version.rb b/lib/appium_console/version.rb
index 1ce679e..a3d90e9 100644
--- a/lib/appium_console/version.rb
+++ b/lib/appium_console/version.rb
@@ -5,6 +5,6 @@ module Appium; end unless defined? Appium
 module Appium
   module Console
     VERSION = '4.2.0' unless defined? ::Appium::Console::VERSION
-    DATE = '2025-01-25' unless defined? ::Appium::Console::DATE
+    DATE = '2025-01-25' unless defined? ::Appium::Console::DATE # x-release-please-date
   end
 end
diff --git a/readme.md b/readme.md
index 5c39798..8a23bae 100644
--- a/readme.md
+++ b/readme.md
@@ -31,3 +31,8 @@
 - 3.0.0
     - Update ruby_lib version to v12
 
+
+## Releasing
+
+Review and merge the Release Please PR to publish. See [RELEASING.md](RELEASING.md)
+for one-time Trusted Publishing setup and recovery instructions.
diff --git a/release-please-config.json b/release-please-config.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..beb2365
--- /dev/null
+++ b/release-please-config.json
@@ -0,0 +1,17 @@
+{
+  "$schema": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/googleapis/release-please/main/schemas/config.json",
+  "bootstrap-sha": "2f63a20264d375195d49b975df974522605c54ce",
+  "packages": {
+    ".": {
+      "release-type": "ruby",
+      "package-name": "appium_console",
+      "version-file": "lib/appium_console/version.rb",
+      "include-component-in-tag": false,
+      "include-v-in-tag": true,
+      "changelog-path": "CHANGELOG.md",
+      "extra-files": [
+        "lib/appium_console/version.rb"
+      ]
+    }
+  }
+}