Someone open-sourced Claude Design and made it completely free. Same workflow, same canvas, no paywall — and you can use any AI model you already have.
Claude Design
Paid subscription required
Usage limits per week
Locked to Claude only
Cloud-only, no self-host
Anthropic controls your data
Open Design
✓ Completely free software
✓ No usage limits ever
✓ 21+ AI models supported
✓ Runs locally on your computer
✓ Your files, your data
21+
AI models supported
150
Design systems built in
460+
Plugins available
$0
Software cost
Setup
Install in 3 steps.
Open Design runs locally on your Mac, Windows, or Linux machine. No account required. No cloud dependency. Just install and go.
1
Download Open Design
Go to the GitHub repo and download the latest release for your operating system.
01 Go to github.com/nexu-io/open-design
02 Click Releases on the right side
03 Download the latest version for your OS — Mac, Windows, or Linux
04 Install it like any normal app
💡
Mac users
You can also install via Homebrew: brew install --cask nexuio/tap/open-design
2
Pick Your AI Model
This is where Open Design wins. Top right corner of the app — pick any AI model you already have access to. Free models work great for most tasks.
01 Open the app and look at the top right corner
02 Click the model picker — it auto-detects any AI CLI already on your computer
03 Pick your model — see the guide below for which to use
04 If using an API key, paste it in the settings panel
✅
Start here
Use the free Gemini CLI to get started — no API key needed for basic usage. Most landing pages and prototypes look great on free models.
Gemini CLI
Free tier available
Best starting point. Free tier covers most landing pages and prototypes.
Claude Code
Pay per use
Best output quality. Use when you want Claude Design-level results.
GPT / Codex
BYOK
Great if you already have a ChatGPT Plus subscription.
DeepSeek
Very cheap
Strong results at a fraction of the cost. Good for high volume work.
Cursor Agent
BYOK
Works if you already use Cursor. Auto-detected from your PATH.
Local LLM
Completely free
Run a local model via LM Studio. Zero API costs. Slower but private.
3
Describe What You Want
Same as Claude Design — type your brief in the chat panel and the AI builds it live. The canvas updates in real time as it generates.
01 Type your design brief in the chat panel on the left
02 Watch it build live in the canvas on the right
03 Click any element to make targeted edits — no re-prompting needed
04 Export as HTML, PDF, PPTX, or MP4 when you're happy
⚡
Export options
One-click deploy to Vercel or Cloudflare. Or hand off the code to Claude Code, Cursor, or VS Code to keep building it as a real app.
What You Can Build
Everything Claude Design can do. Free.
Same output, no limits, no paywall.
🌐 Websites
Most popular
Landing pages, portfolios, business sites. Animated, production-ready HTML.
📱 App Prototypes
Multi-screen
Full mobile app flows with XP ribbons, tabs, navigation and animations.
📊 Dashboards
Live data
KPI walls, analytics boards, decision rooms with live updating panels.
🎞️ Slide Decks
Export to PPTX
Magazine-quality presentations with WebGL heroes and full animations.
🎬 Motion Graphics
Export to MP4
Animated sequences and motion graphics exported as real video files.
🛠️ Internal Tools
No backend
CRMs, trackers, dashboards — all as single HTML files that run in your browser.
Design Systems
150 brand systems built in.
Pick a design system before prompting and every output automatically matches that brand's visual language. No extra prompting needed.
Linear
Stripe
Vercel
Airbnb
Apple
Tesla
Notion
Anthropic
Cursor
Figma
Supabase
GitHub
Framer
Loom
Arc
+ 135 more
Tips
Get the best results.
How to actually use Open Design properly — not just install it and get mediocre outputs.
1
Pick a design system first
Before typing your brief, select a design system from the library. Vercel or Linear for dark minimal, Stripe for clean professional, Airbnb for warm consumer. The output quality jumps massively when Claude has a visual reference.
2
Use free models for drafts, paid for finals
Start every project on Gemini CLI free tier to iterate fast and find the right direction. Then switch to Claude Code or GPT-4 for the final polished version. Saves money and speeds up exploration.
3
Click to edit instead of re-prompting
Once something is built, click directly on any element in the canvas to make targeted changes. You don't need to describe the whole thing again — just click what you want changed and tell it what to do. Way faster.
4
Be specific about animations
Open Design follows animation instructions closely. Say exactly what you want: "animate headline letter by letter on load, fade in cards on scroll, hover glow on buttons". Vague requests like "make it animated" get mediocre results.
5
Hand off to Claude Code when done
The export is real HTML/CSS/JS — not a screenshot, not a mockup. Drop the exported folder into Claude Code or Cursor to keep building it as an actual app. The design-to-code pipeline is completely seamless.
6
Deploy in one click
When you're ready to go live, hit the share menu and deploy directly to Vercel or Cloudflare. Just paste your access token. Goes from design to live URL in under a minute.
Prompts
Copy these and go.
Paste any of these directly into Open Design. Add a design system on top for even better results.
→ Business Landing Page
Build me a landing page for an AI receptionist service for local businesses.
Style: Dark, premium, cinematic — like a modern SaaS company
Colors: Black background, electric blue accents, white text
Sections:
- Hero with bold headline and "Book a Free Demo" CTA
- Problem section: "Every missed call is lost revenue"
- 3 feature cards with icons and descriptions
- Pricing: Starter $297, Growth $497, Scale $897/month
- 3 client testimonials (med spa, dental clinic, law firm)
- Final CTA section
Animations: Fade in on scroll for every section, hover glow on cards
Export as a single HTML file
→ Mobile App Prototype
Build me a 3-screen mobile app prototype for an AI business tool.
Screen 1 — Onboarding: Clean welcome screen with logo, tagline, and "Get Started" button
Screen 2 — Dashboard: Stats at top, recent activity list, quick action buttons
Screen 3 — Settings: Profile section, notification toggles, subscription status
Style: Dark mode, rounded cards, smooth tab navigation at the bottom
Dimensions: Mobile 390x844 (iPhone size)
Make each screen feel polished and production-ready
→ Pitch Deck Slides
Build me a 6-slide pitch deck for an AI receptionist business.
Slide 1 — Title: Company name, tagline, founder name
Slide 2 — Problem: Local businesses miss 40% of calls. Every missed call = lost revenue.
Slide 3 — Solution: AI receptionist that answers 24/7, books appointments, never misses a call
Slide 4 — Market: $15B receptionist market, 33M small businesses in the US
Slide 5 — Traction: 12 clients, $4,800 MRR, 3 month growth chart
Slide 6 — Ask: Raising $250K at $1.5M valuation
Style: Dark, bold, minimal — like a YC startup deck
Export as PPTX
→ Personal Brand Site
Build me a personal brand website.
About me: 18 year old entrepreneur, AI content creator, building AI businesses
Style: Bold, editorial, black and yellow — confident and young
Sections:
- Hero: My name large, subtitle "AI entrepreneur & content creator", social links
- What I do: 3 cards — Content creation, AI receptionist business, community
- Featured videos: 3 video thumbnail placeholders with view counts
- Work with me: Two options — AI receptionist setup, community membership
- Footer with all social handles
Animations: Dramatic title entrance, card hover effects, smooth scrolling
Make it feel like a premium creator brand
Checklist
You're ready.
✓
Downloaded Open Design from github.com/nexu-io/open-design