appllama-skills

appllama-skills is a pair of Skills that Appllama published on GitHub. Appllama itself runs a design library of top-grossing mobile apps, with their real screens, flows and UI patterns alongside revenue and download figures. The first, appllama-app-design-skill, sets the bar for building screens. It defaults to Expo and React Native, asks for close adherence to Apple's Human Interface Guidelines, semantic system colors and native controls, and spells out when a screen should push or replace, when to use a modal or a sheet, and how to keep the back gesture from returning users to sign-in or a paywall they've already paid through. It also lists default bans on the usual AI look, such as glowing purple gradient buttons, glassmorphism everywhere and emoji used as icons, and asks for a single accent color across the whole app. The second, appllama-usage, explains how to research with Appllama's MCP (Model Context Protocol) server: find the top apps in a category, walk their screens in journey order, search for a screen type or component, and save the patterns as local notes. Each Skill installs on its own, and the README says the design Skill works without the MCP and gets sharper with it connected. What sets it apart is its definition of done: the whole flow has to be screen-recorded in a simulator and checked frame by frame for stutter, flashes and jumps, and screenshots or code review alone don't count.

Who it's for:people prototyping iOS or Android apps with an AI coding agent who want screens that feel like a proper native app. You'll need to work with Expo and React Native; readers who don't code won't get much from it.

Before you start: install with npx skills add appllama/appllama-skills, add the --skill flag to install just one of the two, or copy the folders into your AI tool's skills directory by hand. The Skill files are MIT licensed and free to use; the Appllama name, llama and logo are trademarks and not covered by MIT. appllama-usage only works with Appllama's MCP (mcp.appllama.io), authorized through your Appllama account. The README says MCP access is part of the paid Pro plan and every call except the balance check spends one credit; check the official site for current pricing and limits. Your queries are sent to Appllama's servers. The design Skill expects you to run the app in the iOS Simulator or an Android emulator and record it, so you need a simulator installed and an AI tool that can drive it; skip that step and the screens haven't been verified. When it needs illustrations it calls an image tool you've connected, at that provider's prices. Appllama's terms forbid sweeping the library to extract data, media links expire after about an hour, and images carry an Appllama watermark. The Skill also warns that you're studying other apps' design patterns, and copying a competitor's screen one to one is legally risky.

Based on the project's public documentation. Not tested by AI Inspiration World.