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CLI Overview

@appilots/cli is a command-line tool that statically analyzes your React Native project's source code — screens, navigation, forms, actions — and turns it into an MCP document: a structured description of your app that the Appilots backend uses to let the AI agent understand and operate your UI. See How it works and MCP documents for the conceptual picture; this section covers the tool itself.

The CLI ships a single binary, appilots.

Install​

npm install -g @appilots/cli

A global install is recommended for CI runners and for day-to-day local use. If you'd rather not install anything, run it on demand instead:

npx appilots <command>

Commands​

CommandWhat it does
appilots initInteractive setup — writes a .appilotsrc config file to the current directory
appilots syncAnalyzes the project and uploads the MCP document — the everyday command
appilots watchRuns an initial sync, then watches the filesystem and re-syncs on change
appilots generateAnalyzes the project and writes the MCP document to disk, without uploading
appilots statusPrints local config plus the MCP document currently active on the server
appilots evalRuns agent eval scenarios against the current MCP document and checks for regressions vs a committed baseline

Every command and flag is documented in full on the CLI usage page.

Typical flow​

Run init once per project to save your API key and server URL:

appilots init --api-key ak_xxxxxxxxxxxx...

Then run sync whenever your app's screens, navigation, or forms change — by hand, or as a step in CI (see CI integration):

appilots sync

generate is useful when you want to inspect or diff the MCP document without touching the server — see Output format for what it writes.

Running with no arguments​

appilots with no command defaults to sync if a config is already resolvable (a .appilotsrc file, or APPILOTS_API_KEY in the environment). Otherwise it prints a welcome banner and the help text.

Next steps​

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