OpenPencil

The world's first open-source AI-native vector design tool.
_{Concurrent Agent Teams • Design-as-Code • Built-in MCP Server • Multi-model Intelligence}

English · 简体中文 · 繁體中文 · 日本語 · 한국어 · Français · Español · Deutsch · Português · Русский · हिन्दी · Türkçe · ไทย · Tiếng Việt · Bahasa Indonesia

_{Click the image to watch the demo video}

Note: There is another open-source project with the same name — OpenPencil, focused on Figma-compatible visual design with real-time collaboration. This project focuses on AI-native design-to-code workflows.

Why OpenPencil

🎨 Prompt → Canvas

Describe any UI in natural language. Watch it appear on the infinite canvas in real-time with streaming animation. Modify existing designs by selecting elements and chatting.

🤖 Concurrent Agent Teams

The orchestrator decomposes complex pages into spatial sub-tasks. Multiple AI agents work on different sections simultaneously — hero, features, footer — all streaming in parallel.

🧠 Multi-Model Intelligence

Automatically adapts to each model's capabilities. Claude gets full prompts with thinking; GPT-4o/Gemini disable thinking; smaller models (MiniMax, Qwen, Llama) get simplified prompts for reliable output.

🔌 MCP Server

One-click install into Claude Code, Codex, Gemini, OpenCode, Kiro, or Copilot CLIs. Design from your terminal — read, create, and modify .op files through any MCP-compatible agent.

📦 Design-as-Code

.op files are JSON — human-readable, Git-friendly, diffable. Design variables generate CSS custom properties. Code export to React + Tailwind or HTML + CSS.

🖥️ Runs Everywhere

Web app + native desktop on macOS, Windows, and Linux via Electron. Auto-updates from GitHub Releases. .op file association — double-click to open.

⌨️ CLI — `op`

Control the design tool from your terminal. op design, op insert, op export — batch design DSL, node manipulation, code export. Pipe in from files or stdin. Works with desktop app or web server.

🎯 Multi-Platform Code Export

Export to React + Tailwind, HTML + CSS, Vue, Svelte, Flutter, SwiftUI, Jetpack Compose, React Native — all from one .op file. Design variables become CSS custom properties.

Install

macOS (Homebrew):

brew tap zseven-w/openpencil
brew install --cask openpencil

Windows (Scoop):

scoop bucket add openpencil https://github.com/zseven-w/scoop-openpencil
scoop install openpencil

Linux / Windows direct download: GitHub Releases — .exe (Windows), .AppImage / .deb (Linux)

CLI (op):

npm install -g @zseven-w/openpencil

Quick Start (Development)

# Install dependencies
bun install

# Start dev server at http://localhost:3000
bun --bun run dev

Or run as a desktop app:

bun run electron:dev

Prerequisites: Bun >= 1.0 and Node.js >= 18

Docker

Multiple image variants are available — pick the one that fits your needs:

Image	Size	Includes
`openpencil:latest`	~226 MB	Web app only
`openpencil-claude:latest`	—	+ Claude Code CLI
`openpencil-codex:latest`	—	+ Codex CLI
`openpencil-opencode:latest`	—	+ OpenCode CLI
`openpencil-copilot:latest`	—	+ GitHub Copilot CLI
`openpencil-gemini:latest`	—	+ Gemini CLI
`openpencil-full:latest`	~1 GB	All CLI tools

Run (web only):

docker run -d -p 3000:3000 ghcr.io/zseven-w/openpencil:latest

Run with AI CLI (e.g. Claude Code):

The AI chat relies on Claude CLI OAuth login. Use a Docker volume to persist the login session:

# Step 1 — Login (one-time)
docker volume create openpencil-claude-auth
docker run -it --rm \
  -v openpencil-claude-auth:/root/.claude \
  ghcr.io/zseven-w/openpencil-claude:latest claude login

# Step 2 — Start
docker run -d -p 3000:3000 \
  -v openpencil-claude-auth:/root/.claude \
  ghcr.io/zseven-w/openpencil-claude:latest

Build locally:

# Base (web only)
docker build --target base -t openpencil .

# With a specific CLI
docker build --target with-claude -t openpencil-claude .

# Full (all CLIs)
docker build --target full -t openpencil-full .

AI-Native Design

Prompt to UI

Text-to-design — describe a page, get it generated on canvas in real-time with streaming animation
Orchestrator — decomposes complex pages into spatial sub-tasks for parallel generation
Design modification — select elements, then describe changes in natural language
Vision input — attach screenshots or mockups for reference-based design

Multi-Agent Support

Agent	Setup
Built-in (9+ providers)	Select from provider presets with region switcher — Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, DeepSeek, and more
Claude Code	No config — uses Claude Agent SDK with local OAuth
Codex CLI	Connect in Agent Settings (`Cmd+,`)
OpenCode	Connect in Agent Settings (`Cmd+,`)
GitHub Copilot	`copilot login` then connect in Agent Settings (`Cmd+,`)
Gemini CLI	Connect in Agent Settings (`Cmd+,`)

Model Capability Profiles — automatically adapts prompts, thinking mode, and timeouts per model tier. Full-tier models (Claude) get complete prompts; standard-tier (GPT-4o, Gemini, DeepSeek) disable thinking; basic-tier (MiniMax, Qwen, Llama, Mistral) get simplified nested-JSON prompts for maximum reliability.

i18n — Full interface localization in 15 languages: English, 简体中文, 繁體中文, 日本語, 한국어, Français, Español, Deutsch, Português, Русский, हिन्दी, Türkçe, ไทย, Tiếng Việt, Bahasa Indonesia.

MCP Server

Built-in MCP server — one-click install into Claude Code / Codex / Gemini / OpenCode / Kiro / Copilot CLIs
Auto-detects Node.js — if not installed, falls back to HTTP transport and auto-starts the MCP HTTP server
Design automation from terminal: read, create, and modify .op files via any MCP-compatible agent
Layered design workflow — design_skeleton → design_content → design_refine for higher-fidelity multi-section designs
Segmented prompt retrieval — load only the design knowledge you need (schema, layout, roles, icons, planning, etc.)
Multi-page support — create, rename, reorder, and duplicate pages via MCP tools

Code Generation

React + Tailwind CSS, HTML + CSS, CSS Variables
Vue, Svelte, Flutter, SwiftUI, Jetpack Compose, React Native

CLI — `op`

Install globally and control the design tool from your terminal:

npm install -g @zseven-w/openpencil

op start                     # Launch desktop app
op design @landing.txt       # Batch design from file
op insert '{"type":"RECT"}'  # Insert a node
op export react --out .      # Export to React + Tailwind
op import:figma design.fig   # Import Figma file
cat design.dsl | op design - # Pipe from stdin

Supports three input methods: inline string, @filepath (read from file), or - (read from stdin). Works with desktop app or web dev server. See CLI README for full command reference.

LLM Skill — install the OpenPencil Skill plugin to teach AI agents (Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, Gemini CLI, etc.) how to design with op.

Features

Canvas & Drawing

Infinite canvas with pan, zoom, smart alignment guides, and snapping
Rectangle, Ellipse, Line, Polygon, Pen (Bezier), Frame, Text
Boolean operations — union, subtract, intersect with contextual toolbar
Icon picker (Iconify) and image import (PNG/JPEG/SVG/WebP/GIF)
Auto-layout — vertical/horizontal with gap, padding, justify, align
Multi-page documents with tab navigation

Design System

Design variables — color, number, string tokens with $variable references
Multi-theme support — multiple axes, each with variants (Light/Dark, Compact/Comfortable)
Component system — reusable components with instances and overrides
CSS sync — auto-generated custom properties, var(--name) in code output

Figma Import

Import .fig files with layout, fills, strokes, effects, text, images, and vectors preserved

Desktop App

Native macOS, Windows, and Linux via Electron
.op file association — double-click to open, single-instance lock
Auto-update from GitHub Releases
Native application menu and file dialogs

Tech Stack


Frontend	React 19 · TanStack Start · Tailwind CSS v4 · shadcn/ui · i18next
Canvas	CanvasKit/Skia (WASM, GPU-accelerated)
State	Zustand v5
Server	Nitro
Desktop	Electron 35
CLI	`op` — terminal control, batch design DSL, code export
AI	Vercel AI SDK v6 · Anthropic SDK · Claude Agent SDK · OpenCode SDK · Copilot SDK
Runtime	Bun · Vite 7
File format	`.op` — JSON-based, human-readable, Git-friendly

Project Structure

openpencil/
├── apps/
│   ├── web/                 TanStack Start web app
│   │   ├── src/
│   │   │   ├── canvas/      CanvasKit/Skia engine — drawing, sync, layout
│   │   │   ├── components/  React UI — editor, panels, shared dialogs, icons
│   │   │   ├── services/ai/ AI chat, orchestrator, design generation, streaming
│   │   │   ├── services/codegen/ Code generation service wrappers
│   │   │   ├── stores/      Zustand — canvas, document, pages, history, AI
│   │   │   ├── mcp/         MCP server tools for external CLI integration
│   │   │   ├── hooks/       Keyboard shortcuts, file drop, Figma paste, MCP sync
│   │   │   ├── i18n/        Internationalization — 15 locales
│   │   │   └── uikit/       Reusable component kit system
│   │   └── server/
│   │       ├── api/ai/      Nitro API — streaming chat, agent, generation, image search
│   │       ├── api/mcp/     MCP HTTP transport endpoints
│   │       └── utils/       Claude, OpenCode, Codex, Copilot, Gemini CLI wrappers
│   ├── desktop/             Electron desktop app
│   │   ├── main.ts          Window, Nitro fork, native menu, auto-updater
│   │   ├── ipc-handlers.ts  Native file dialogs, theme sync, prefs IPC
│   │   └── preload.ts       IPC bridge
│   └── cli/                 CLI tool — `op` command
│       ├── src/commands/    Design, document, export, import, node, page, variable commands
│       ├── connection.ts    WebSocket connection to running app
│       └── launcher.ts      Auto-detect and launch desktop app or web server
├── packages/
│   ├── pen-types/           Type definitions for PenDocument model
│   ├── pen-core/            Document tree ops, layout engine, variables
│   ├── pen-codegen/         Code generators (React, HTML, Vue, Flutter, ...)
│   ├── pen-figma/           Figma .fig file parser and converter
│   ├── pen-renderer/        Standalone CanvasKit/Skia renderer
│   ├── pen-sdk/             Umbrella SDK (re-exports all packages)
│   ├── pen-ai-skills/       AI prompt skill engine (phase-driven prompt loading)
│   └── agent/               AI agent SDK (Vercel AI SDK, multi-provider, agent teams)
└── .githooks/               Pre-commit version sync from branch name

Keyboard Shortcuts

Key	Action	Key	Action
`V`	Select	`Cmd+S`	Save
`R`	Rectangle	`Cmd+Z`	Undo
`O`	Ellipse	`Cmd+Shift+Z`	Redo
`L`	Line	`Cmd+C/X/V/D`	Copy/Cut/Paste/Duplicate
`T`	Text	`Cmd+G`	Group
`F`	Frame	`Cmd+Shift+G`	Ungroup
`P`	Pen tool	`Cmd+Shift+E`	Export
`H`	Hand (pan)	`Cmd+Shift+C`	Code panel
`Del`	Delete	`Cmd+Shift+V`	Variables panel
`[ / ]`	Reorder	`Cmd+J`	AI chat
Arrows	Nudge 1px	`Cmd+,`	Agent settings
`Cmd+Alt+U`	Boolean union	`Cmd+Alt+S`	Boolean subtract
`Cmd+Alt+I`	Boolean intersect

Scripts

bun --bun run dev          # Dev server (port 3000)
bun --bun run build        # Production build
bun --bun run test         # Run tests (Vitest)
npx tsc --noEmit           # Type check
bun run bump <version>     # Sync version across all package.json
bun run electron:dev       # Electron dev
bun run electron:build     # Electron package
bun run cli:dev            # Run CLI from source
bun run cli:compile        # Compile CLI to dist

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! See CLAUDE.md for architecture details and code style.

Fork and clone
Set up version sync: git config core.hooksPath .githooks
Create a branch: git checkout -b feat/my-feature
Run checks: npx tsc --noEmit && bun --bun run test
Commit with Conventional Commits: feat(canvas): add rotation snapping
Open a PR against main

Roadmap

Design variables & tokens with CSS sync
Component system (instances & overrides)
AI design generation with orchestrator
MCP server integration with layered design workflow
Multi-page support
Figma .fig import
Boolean operations (union, subtract, intersect)
Multi-model capability profiles
Monorepo restructure with reusable packages
CLI tool (op) for terminal control
Built-in AI agent SDK with multi-provider support
i18n — 15 languages
Collaborative editing
Plugin system

Contributors

Community

Join our Discord — Ask questions, share designs, suggest features.

openpencil

OpenPencil

Why OpenPencil

🎨 Prompt → Canvas

🤖 Concurrent Agent Teams

🧠 Multi-Model Intelligence

🔌 MCP Server

📦 Design-as-Code

🖥️ Runs Everywhere

⌨️ CLI — `op`

🎯 Multi-Platform Code Export

Install

Quick Start (Development)

Docker

AI-Native Design

CLI — `op`

Features

Tech Stack

Project Structure

Keyboard Shortcuts

Scripts

Contributing

Roadmap

Contributors

Community

Star History

License

Reviews (0)

OpenPencil

Why OpenPencil

🎨 Prompt → Canvas

🤖 Concurrent Agent Teams

🧠 Multi-Model Intelligence

🔌 MCP Server

📦 Design-as-Code

🖥️ Runs Everywhere

⌨️ CLI — op

🎯 Multi-Platform Code Export

Install

Quick Start (Development)

Docker

AI-Native Design

CLI — op

Features

Tech Stack

Project Structure

Keyboard Shortcuts

Scripts

Contributing

Roadmap

Contributors

Community

Star History

License

Reviews (0)

⌨️ CLI — `op`

CLI — `op`