Build your own AI tools to fill specific workflow gaps

2026-02-10 · Source: How I AI · Field: Technology & Digital — Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning, Software Development & Engineering · Depth: Intermediate, quick

Summary

A new tool allows users to generate UI mockups by providing Claude with JSON files that define flowchart-like structures. This system enables the creation of visual representations with nodes and edges, offering a fidelity level between wireframes and full mockups. The tool supports iterative design, where users can directly edit the visual elements within an editor, and these changes are automatically saved back to the underlying JSON file. This functionality allows Claude to read the updated file and incorporate design modifications, streamlining the process of guiding the AI model in UI development.

Key takeaway

For Product Designers or AI Engineers aiming to rapidly prototype UI concepts, consider building custom tools that translate visual edits into structured data like JSON. This approach allows AI models like Claude to directly interpret design changes, significantly accelerating iteration cycles and ensuring the AI's output aligns precisely with your evolving visual requirements, much like using Figma or Excalidraw.

Key insights

Custom AI tools can bridge workflow gaps by enabling AI models to interpret and generate structured visual designs.

Principles

• AI models can interpret structured data for visual generation.
• Iterative design benefits from direct visual editing linked to data.

Method

Define UI elements (nodes, edges, colors) in a JSON file, feed it to Claude for mockup generation, then edit the visual output directly in an editor that updates the JSON, allowing Claude to re-interpret.

In practice

• Use JSON to define UI flowcharts for AI interpretation.
• Integrate visual editors that update underlying data structures.

Topics

• AI-Assisted Design
• UI Mockup Generation
• JSON Workflows
• Claude AI
• Iterative Design

Best for: AI Engineer, Software Engineer, Product Designer

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Editorial summary, takeaway, and curation by AIssential. Original article published by How I AI.