Build Swift Apps

Build, debug, profile, test, refactor, and release Swift apps across iOS and macOS.

Codex · Claude Code · Cursor · pi · Manual skill installs

Build Swift Apps is a multi-agent skill pack for practical Apple-platform development. It focuses on the workflows that usually decide whether an AI coding session is useful in a real Swift repository: building the app, running it on a simulator, understanding failures, improving SwiftUI and AppKit code, profiling performance, auditing Xcode build times, and preparing apps for release.

The deepest coverage is for iOS and macOS, but the skills are written for Apple-platform Swift work in general. They are intentionally generic: no private project names, no private workflows, and no assumptions about one app architecture.

Quick Start

Easiest: Ask Your Agent

For most users, the simplest install path is to paste this prompt into the coding agent they already use:

Install the Build Swift Apps plugin from https://github.com/Xopoko/build-swift-apps on this computer. Follow the repository installation instructions for the agent you are running in, install required dependencies, ask before installing optional tools, run the doctor checks, and report what was installed.

Codex

mkdir -p "$HOME/.agents/plugins/plugins"
git clone https://github.com/Xopoko/build-swift-apps.git \
  "$HOME/.agents/plugins/plugins/build-swift-apps"
cd "$HOME/.agents/plugins/plugins/build-swift-apps"

./scripts/install-local-plugin.sh
./scripts/doctor.sh --profile core --profile mcp

Then start a new Codex thread and ask for a focused workflow:

Use the iOS debugger skill to build and run this app on a simulator, inspect the first screen, and summarize any runtime failures.

Claude Code

This repository includes Claude Code plugin metadata under .claude-plugin/. After the repository is public or accessible to your GitHub account:

/plugin marketplace add Xopoko/build-swift-apps
/plugin install build-swift-apps@build-swift-apps
/reload-plugins

If you use the appstore-screenshot-studio skill in Claude Code, install its local Node helper dependency after the plugin is installed:

cd "$HOME/.claude/plugins/marketplaces/build-swift-apps"
./scripts/install-deps.sh --profile screenshots --yes

Claude Code namespaces plugin skills, so invoke them as /build-swift-apps:<skill-name> when calling skills explicitly.

Cursor

This repository includes Cursor plugin metadata under .cursor-plugin/. Use Cursor's plugin install or local testing flow once the repository is available to your Cursor workspace. The same skills/ directory is packaged for Cursor, and AGENTS.md provides repository-level guidance for agents that read the open instruction format.

Dependency Check

The skills can run with partial dependencies. Check the current machine first:

./scripts/doctor.sh --all

Install only the tool groups you need:

./scripts/install-deps.sh --profile core --profile mcp
./scripts/install-deps.sh --profile tuist --profile performance --dry-run
./scripts/install-deps.sh --all --skip ettrace --skip ipsw

See docs/INSTALL.md for full install instructions, dependency profiles, and manual setup notes.

Token Efficiency

Build Swift Apps keeps full skill instructions on demand and exposes concise routing metadata for skill selection. The static estimates below serialize each skill name, description, and source-relative file pointer with scripts/token-report.py, using tiktoken and the o200k_base encoding.

This is a source comparison, not proof of runtime- or model-visible context. Hosts may add namespaces or origin URLs, omit fields, or pack the catalog in a different shape. Measure the active runtime separately when that distinction changes a decision.

Metric	Tokens	Notes
Source routing estimate	3,922	Name, description, and source-relative file pointer for all 61 skills.
On-demand skill bodies	37,791	Full body text loaded only when a skill is selected.

Skill	Source routing estimate	On-demand body
app-icon-studio	61	984
apple-dev-research	58	503
apple-firmware-inspector	71	676
appstore-ads-operator	61	843
appstore-archive-uploader	64	843
appstore-aso-auditor	64	687
appstore-build-monitor	53	334
appstore-connect-cli	64	531
appstore-crash-insights	56	525
appstore-id-resolver	57	356
appstore-metadata-localizer	75	425
appstore-metadata-sync	73	436
appstore-notary-runner	67	528
appstore-pricing-planner	66	402
appstore-record-creator	58	570
appstore-release-director	67	726
appstore-release-notes-writer	69	688
appstore-release-planner	68	722
appstore-revenuecat-sync	70	784
appstore-review-readiness	73	440
appstore-screenshot-pipeline	63	1,056
appstore-screenshot-studio	62	696
appstore-screenshot-validator	60	518
appstore-signing-setup	59	646
appstore-subscription-localizer	71	402
appstore-testflight-coordinator	54	346
appstore-wall-publisher	62	373
appstore-workflow-runner	65	793
build-swift-apps	83	981
ios-ettrace-profiler	57	1,080
ios-intents-architect	65	542
ios-liquid-glass-designer	70	452
ios-memgraph-inspector	65	624
ios-rocketsim-operator	54	529
ios-simulator-browser	63	848
ios-simulator-debugger	71	507
ios-swiftui-architect	66	691
macos-appkit-bridge	70	566
macos-liquid-glass-designer	66	593
macos-notarization-packager	70	384
macos-runtime-debugger	73	974
macos-signing-inspector	63	528
macos-swiftpm-runner	72	323
macos-swiftui-architect	73	821
macos-telemetry-probe	60	455
macos-test-diagnoser	70	617
macos-view-architect	60	500
macos-window-architect	68	799
swiftpm-build-inspector	58	536
swiftui-performance-inspector	61	543
swiftui-view-architect	58	481
tuist-flaky-test-stabilizer	63	597
tuist-generation-doctor	61	672
tuist-migration-planner	64	620
tuist-workspace-navigator	62	543
xcode-build-baseline	56	711
xcode-build-strategist	59	1,005
xcode-build-tuner	59	837
xcode-compile-profiler	61	582
xcode-project-auditor	57	523
xcode-ui-test-stabilizer	73	494

Measured with exact token counting and the o200k_base encoding. Regenerate the report after skill edits:

python3 scripts/token-report.py

Included Skills

The skill IDs follow a deliberate naming system:

• app-icon-studio for cross-platform Apple app icon generation and export.
• appstore-* for App Store Connect, TestFlight, screenshots, metadata, pricing, and release operations.
• ios-* and macos-* for platform-specific runtime, UI, packaging, and debugging work.
• swiftui-*, xcode-*, swiftpm-*, tuist-*, and apple-* for framework, build, package, project-generation, and research workflows.
• Role nouns describe the agent's posture: architect, inspector, strategist, tuner, director, studio, operator, coordinator, and runner.

Build, Run, Debug, And Test

Skill	Purpose
build-swift-apps	Route broad or ambiguous Swift and Apple-platform work to the right focused skill.
macos-runtime-debugger	Build, launch, log, and debug local macOS apps and desktop executables.
macos-swiftpm-runner	Build, run, and test SwiftPM-first macOS packages and command-line tools.
macos-test-diagnoser	Triage failing Xcode or SwiftPM test runs and separate real regressions from setup issues.
xcode-ui-test-stabilizer	Create, stabilize, and run Xcode UI tests with focused failure evidence.
macos-telemetry-probe	Add lightweight Logger instrumentation and verify events through runtime logs.

iOS Simulator, Profiling, And Runtime Evidence

Skill	Purpose
ios-simulator-browser	Preferred user-facing Simulator surface: mirror an iOS app into the Codex browser and render SwiftUI package previews with hot reload.
ios-simulator-debugger	Use XcodeBuildMCP to build, run, inspect, and debug iOS simulator apps; hand off to ios-simulator-browser for visible proof.
ios-rocketsim-operator	Use RocketSim's bundled agent skill and CLI for visible simulator UI interaction.
ios-ettrace-profiler	Capture and interpret symbolicated ETTrace profiles for iOS simulator flows.
ios-memgraph-inspector	Capture, inspect, and compare simulator memory graphs with leaks evidence.
swiftui-performance-inspector	Audit SwiftUI performance from code structure before asking for profiling evidence.

SwiftUI, AppKit, And Product UI

Skill	Purpose
ios-swiftui-architect	Build iOS SwiftUI screens with navigation, layout, state, forms, sheets, and media patterns.
macos-swiftui-architect	Build macOS SwiftUI scenes, commands, toolbars, settings, split views, and menu bar extras.
swiftui-view-architect	Refactor SwiftUI views into stable, testable, dependency-explicit components.
macos-view-architect	Refactor macOS SwiftUI scenes and sidebar/detail structures.
macos-appkit-bridge	Bridge SwiftUI to AppKit only where native macOS behavior needs it.
macos-window-architect	Tune macOS 15+ SwiftUI windows, placement, restoration, and scene behavior.
ios-intents-architect	Design App Intents, entities, queries, and shortcuts for Siri, Spotlight, widgets, and controls.
macos-liquid-glass-designer	Adopt modern macOS SwiftUI design and Liquid Glass conventions.
ios-liquid-glass-designer	Implement and review iOS 26+ Liquid Glass SwiftUI features.

Xcode Build Performance

Skill	Purpose
xcode-build-strategist	End-to-end recommend-first build optimization: benchmark, analyze, prioritize, approve, fix, verify.
xcode-build-baseline	Produce repeatable clean and incremental Xcode build baselines with artifacts.
xcode-compile-profiler	Find Swift compile and type-checking hotspots with compiler diagnostics.
xcode-project-auditor	Audit build settings, schemes, target dependencies, and script phases.
swiftpm-build-inspector	Analyze Swift Package Manager graph shape, plugins, pins, and module variants.
xcode-build-tuner	Apply approved build optimizations and re-benchmark to prove impact.

Release, Signing, And Distribution

Skill	Purpose
macos-signing-inspector	Diagnose existing macOS app signing, entitlements, sandboxing, hardened runtime, Gatekeeper, and trust-policy issues.
macos-notarization-packager	Prepare or diagnose Developer ID distribution artifacts, bundle structure, and notarization readiness.
appstore-release-director	Orchestrate an end-to-end iOS App Store release from local repo state through App Store Connect review readiness.
app-icon-studio	Create, evaluate, export, and install iOS AppIcon asset catalogs or macOS .icns bundle icons.
appstore-screenshot-studio	Generate, revise, translate, scrape, and crop App Store marketing screenshot panels.

App Store Connect (asc CLI)

These skills use the public asc command from rorkai/App-Store-Connect-CLI. They cover auth and command discovery, ID resolution, Xcode archive/export, TestFlight, submission readiness, metadata and localization, screenshots, signing, notarization, subscriptions/IAP pricing, crash triage, Apple Ads, and workflow automation.

Skills: appstore-connect-cli, appstore-id-resolver, appstore-archive-uploader, appstore-build-monitor, appstore-testflight-coordinator, appstore-release-planner, appstore-review-readiness, appstore-metadata-sync, appstore-metadata-localizer, appstore-release-notes-writer, appstore-aso-auditor, appstore-screenshot-validator, appstore-screenshot-pipeline, appstore-signing-setup, appstore-notary-runner, appstore-record-creator, appstore-ads-operator, appstore-pricing-planner, appstore-subscription-localizer, appstore-revenuecat-sync, appstore-crash-insights, appstore-workflow-runner, appstore-wall-publisher.

Tuist And Generated Projects

Skill	Purpose
tuist-migration-planner	Move an existing Xcode project toward a Tuist-generated workspace.
tuist-workspace-navigator	Work effectively in Tuist-generated Xcode workspaces.
tuist-generation-doctor	Reproduce and triage generation or post-generation build failures.
tuist-flaky-test-stabilizer	Use Tuist test insights to investigate and fix flaky test cases.

Research And Low-Level Apple Work

Skill	Purpose
apple-dev-research	Search Apple Dev Search for Swift, SwiftUI, Xcode, iOS, and macOS community writing.
apple-firmware-inspector	Use the ipsw CLI for Apple firmware, dyld shared cache, Mach-O, entitlements, and private API research.

Multi-Agent Packaging

The same repository is packaged for several agent ecosystems:

Agent/tool	Files	Notes
Codex	.codex-plugin/plugin.json, .mcp.json, agents/openai.yaml, skills/*/agents/openai.yaml	Native Codex plugin metadata, MCP server definitions, and OpenAI agent manifests.
Claude Code	.claude-plugin/plugin.json, .claude-plugin/marketplace.json	Claude Code plugin and marketplace metadata. Skills live at the plugin root, not inside .claude-plugin/.
Cursor	.cursor-plugin/plugin.json	Cursor plugin metadata with the same skill directory list.
pi	package.json	pi.skills points at every packaged skill.
Generic agents	AGENTS.md	Repository-level instructions for agents that support the open AGENTS.md convention.

Host Dependencies

The plugin exposes host requirements through the doctor profiles below. Tool-dependent skills name their primary dependencies; run the relevant profile before relying on them. Dependency profiles are:

Profile	Main tools
core	Xcode, Swift, xcodebuild, xcrun, git, python3, signing and plist tools.
mcp	Node.js, npm, and npx for bundled MCP servers and browser-preview helpers.
github	gh for GitHub-oriented publishing and issue or PR workflows.
tuist	mise and tuist@latest.
app-store	asc, notarytool, stapler, signing tools, and App Store Connect credentials.
screenshots	AXe (axe) for asc screenshots capture/run, plus Node.js and the bundled appstore-screenshot-studio script dependency: sharp.
performance	ettrace, Xcode tools, Python helper scripts, and dSYM utilities.
firmware	ipsw.
simulator	RocketSim.app with its bundled Agent Skill and CLI, plus Node/npx for serve-sim browser mirroring.

Repository Layout

.
├── .codex-plugin/        # Codex plugin manifest
├── .claude-plugin/       # Claude Code plugin and marketplace manifests
├── .cursor-plugin/       # Cursor plugin manifest
├── agents/               # OpenAI/Codex agent metadata
├── assets/               # Plugin icon assets
├── commands/             # Short command entrypoints
├── docs/                 # Installation and operational documentation
├── NOTICE                # Required copyright and permission notices
├── references/           # Plugin-level audits, ledgers, and routing notes
├── scripts/              # Install, dependency, doctor, and validation helpers
├── shared/               # Shared scripts, references, schemas, and support docs
└── skills/               # Installable Agent Skills, one directory per workflow

Quality Bar

• Evidence first: build, run, test, profile, or inspect before making broad claims.
• Recommend-first for risky build and project changes: benchmark, plan, approve, then fix.
• Scoped edits: prefer the local project's patterns over generic rewrites.
• No private/internal workflows: this repository is meant to be reusable by any Apple-platform developer.
• Cross-agent compatibility: when a skill is added, update Codex, Claude, Cursor, pi, README, and AGENTS.md surfaces together.

Validation

./scripts/validate-package.sh
./scripts/doctor.sh --all

validate-package.sh checks JSON manifests, script syntax, skill frontmatter, multi-agent manifest coverage, and accidental private/work-specific terms.

License

MIT. See LICENSE. Additional required notices are preserved in NOTICE.