Ironsmith is a free, open-source macOS menu bar app for making small, personal Mac apps with AI. Describe what you want, and Ironsmith generates, builds, and saves a native SwiftUI app you can launch, edit, and export to your Applications folder.
- Builds real Mac apps. Generated apps are native Swift and SwiftUI apps that you can create, run, edit, and export, and publish to the Ironsmith Store.
- Works with local AI. Ironsmith was designed with local AI support in mind, and has Ollama support out of the box. You can also connect any OpenAI compatible API, so LM Studio and Llama.cpp work great too.
- Supports hosted models too. Bring your own API keys for OpenAI, Anthropic, and Gemini, log in or skip the API key and sign into Ironsmith to access them immediately. Using your existing ChatGPT login is also supported.
- Offers specialized coding agents. Choose Ironsmith's in-house agents for tiny macOS apps or OpenAI's Codex for more complex projects.
- Doesn't require Xcode. Every generated app is a Swift package and is built entirely with the lightweight Xcode command line tools rather than full Xcode. In fact Ironsmith itself doesn't even use Xcode!
- Sandboxes every app by default. Generated apps are built as signed app bundles with sandboxing and hardened runtime enabled, greatly reducing the impact of bugs, mistakes, or malicious behavior. Sensitive permissions such as camera and microphone access must also be explicitly enabled. However, you can disable these protections, and if you do, it’s highly recommended that you review the code before running it.
The Ironsmith Store is a remix platform for native macOS apps. Every app in the Store is remixable: use it as-is, inspect its source, or turn it into the starting point for the exact app you want.
- Search by feature or workflow. Describe what an app should do and find matches by capability, not only by name.
- Start from the closest fit. Pick any Store app as a base, then add features, remove what you don't need, or take it in a new direction.
- Let Auto Remix do the searching. Turn on Auto Remix when creating an app and Ironsmith can find useful Store foundations and reuse their capabilities automatically.
Ironsmith works best for focused utilities: the small apps you wish existed but wouldn't want to hunt down or build yourself. That said, with more capable models like GPT‑5.6 Sol or Fable 5, you can create some surprisingly sophisticated apps.
| Synthesizer | Painting App | HEIF Converter |
|---|---|---|
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| SVG Editor | Notepad | Network Visualizer |
|---|---|---|
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Some examples of prompts you can try:
- "Make a utility that renames a folder of screenshots by date and window title."
- "Build a tiny app that splits a PDF into one file per page."
- "Build a clipboard cleaner that strips tracking parameters from copied URLs."
- "Make a small CSV inspector that highlights duplicate rows and missing values."
Download the latest Ironsmith build from GitHub Releases or the website.
Ironsmith requires macOS 26 or newer and supports both Intel and Apple Silicon Macs. Make sure Apple Intelligence is enabled where available; Ironsmith uses it to create app icons and provide the built-in Foundation Model.
On first launch, Ironsmith checks for the Xcode Command Line Tools as generated apps are compiled locally. If they are missing, macOS will prompt you to install them. You can also install them manually:
xcode-select --installDevelopment requires macOS 26 or newer and the Xcode Command Line Tools. Xcode itself is not required.
Build the development app:
script/build.shBuild and run the development app:
script/build.sh runRun tests:
script/test.shClean SwiftPM and script outputs:
script/clean.shCopy Config/.env.example to Config/.env and fill in IRONSMITH_DEV_SIGN_IDENTITY with your Apple Development ID to avoid repeated keychain asks when running new builds.
Issues and pull requests are welcome. Start with CONTRIBUTING.md for the local workflow and PR expectations.
Ironsmith is licensed under the GNU General Public License v3.0.