Open Design

Open Design is an open-source desktop app that provides an agentic workspace for UI and UX design. It functions as a native desktop application for macOS and Windows, allowing users to generate prototypes, dashboards, and visual assets using AI agents. The software shifts the design process from manual pixel pushing to a system of skills and design contracts that coding agents can execute.

Users interact with the tool through a studio environment where they can define briefs and apply specific design systems. The application supports a local-first approach, enabling the generation of real CSS and HTML artifacts that are rendered in a sandboxed preview. It is designed to integrate directly with existing developer workflows, turning a local machine into a design studio.

Key features

• Generates web, desktop, and mobile prototypes using real CSS and HTML
• Creates programmatic motion graphics and animated videos via HyperFrames
• Produces pitch decks and magazine layouts exportable to PDF and PPTX
• Manages brand contracts through DESIGN.md files to ensure visual consistency
• Includes a library of over 100 skills and 150 design systems
• Provides a sandboxed iframe preview for instant artifact rendering
• Supports BYOK connectivity for OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and Ollama endpoints
• Integrates with coding agents via MCP

The architecture relies on a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server, which allows mainstream coding agents to consume its design tools natively. It includes an Agentic Model Router (AMR) to manage multiple flagship models and a plugin system to extend generation capabilities. The tool is built for designers and developers who use AI agents to bridge the gap between a conceptual brief and a functional frontend prototype.

Open Design is a design engine for the agent era, focusing on programmatic generation over manual canvas editing.