icon-gen

name	icon-gen
description	Generates app icons using the snapai CLI with AI-powered image generation. Orchestrates project discovery, style refinement, icon generation, review, and multi-platform resizing. Triggers on "generate app icon", "create an icon", "make an app icon", "icon for my project", "app icon design", "generate icons", "app store icon", "icon set", or mentions "snapai".
allowed-tools	["Bash(snapai:*)","Bash(magick:*)","Bash(mkdir:*)","Bash(ls:*)","Read","Glob","Grep","AskUserQuestion"]
argument-hint	[project-path]
effort	high

App Icon Generator

Generate polished app icons using snapai with an interactive refinement loop, then resize for target platforms with ImageMagick.

Prerequisites

• snapai CLI — installed and authenticated (snapai on PATH)
• ImageMagick — installed (magick on PATH) for resizing
• API key — snapai requires an active API key (configured via snapai config --openai-api-key <key> or snapai config --google-api-key <key>; check with snapai config --show)

Workflow

Follow all six phases sequentially. Do not skip phases unless the user explicitly asks to.

Phase 1: Project Discovery

Investigate the project to build context for prompt generation.

If $ARGUMENTS contains a project path:

1. Read project manifest files to understand what the project does:
   • README.md, package.json, Cargo.toml, pubspec.yaml, deno.json, pyproject.toml, go.mod, or similar
2. Glob for existing icons or branding assets:
   • **/icon*, **/logo*, **/Assets.xcassets/**, **/mipmap-*/**, **/favicon*
3. Synthesize a 2–3 sentence summary covering:
   • What the project does
   • Target audience or platform
   • Any existing brand identity (colors, style, existing icon themes)

If no path is provided:

Ask the user to describe their project, target audience, and any brand preferences.

Phase 2: Style Refinement

Present two questions in a single AskUserQuestion call:

Question 1 — Visual Style:

Option	Description
Let AI decide	snapai chooses the best style based on the prompt
Minimalist	Clean, simple shapes with --style minimalism
Glassy	Glossy, reflective surfaces with --style glassy
Neon	Vibrant, glowing outlines with --style neon

Allow "Other" for custom style descriptions.

Question 2 — Color Palette:

Option	Description
Let AI decide	Colors chosen to match the prompt context
Vibrant	Bold, saturated colors
Muted / Pastel	Soft, understated tones
Monochrome	Single color or grayscale

Allow "Other" for specific color values (e.g., "brand blue #2563EB").

Phase 3: Concept Proposal

Compose a detailed icon description for the --prompt value:

1. Incorporate project context from Phase 1
2. Apply style and color preferences from Phase 2
3. Focus on a single, recognizable visual element at icon scale
4. Describe the composition, color treatment, and mood

Present the proposed prompt to the user via AskUserQuestion:

Option	Description
Generate this	Proceed to icon generation with this prompt
Refine	Modify the prompt (ask what to change, update, re-present)
Start over	Return to concept composition from scratch

Loop on "Refine" until the user selects "Generate this" or "Start over".

Phase 4: Generate Icon

Determine the output directory:

1. If the project has an assets/ directory → <project>/assets/icons/
2. If the project has a Resources/ directory (Xcode) → <project>/Resources/icons/
3. Otherwise → <project>/icons/

Run the generation command:

mkdir -p <output-dir>
snapai icon --model banana --prompt "<approved-prompt>" --output <output-dir> [--style <style>]

After generation completes, show the generated icon to the user by reading the output PNG file with the Read tool.

Phase 5: Review & Iterate

Present the generated icon and ask the user via AskUserQuestion:

Option	Description
Keep it	Accept this icon and proceed to resizing
Tweak it	Modify the prompt slightly and regenerate
Different concept	Return to Phase 3 for a new concept
Generate more variants	Run with --pro -n 3 to produce multiple options

Behavior per choice:

• Keep it → proceed to Phase 6
• Tweak it → ask what to change, update the prompt, re-run Phase 4
• Different concept → return to Phase 3
• Generate more variants → re-run with --pro -n 3 (plain --model banana without --pro only supports -n 1), show all results, ask user to pick one, then offer the same review options again

Loop until the user selects "Keep it".

Phase 6: Platform Resizing

Ask the user which platforms to resize for using AskUserQuestion with multiSelect: true:

Option	Description
iOS	App Store and device icons (1024 down to 20px)
Android	Play Store and launcher icons (512 down to 48px)
macOS	App and Finder icons (1024 down to 16px)
Web / Favicon	PWA, favicon, and Apple touch icons
Raycast	Raycast extension icons (512 and 256px)

For each selected platform, create a subdirectory and resize:

mkdir -p <output-dir>/<platform>
magick <source>.png -resize NxN <output-dir>/<platform>/icon-<N>.png

Refer to references/platform-sizes.md for the complete list of sizes and their usage annotations for each platform.

After resizing, list all generated files and report completion with a summary table showing platform, file count, and directory path.

Prompt Construction Guidelines

When composing the --prompt value:

• Lead with the subject — "A [object/symbol] representing [concept]"
• Describe at icon scale — single focal element, no text, no fine detail
• Specify background treatment — solid color, gradient, or transparent
• Include material/texture — matte, glossy, metallic, flat
• State color explicitly — even if Phase 2 chose "Let AI decide", mention dominant colors

Example prompt:

A stylized mountain peak with aurora borealis ribbons, matte finish, deep navy background with teal and purple accents, minimal detail, app icon composition

Tips

• This skill defaults to Banana (--model banana) — it produces the best results for icons and is the only model that should be used unless the user explicitly requests otherwise. Note that snapai's own CLI default is gpt-2, not Banana, so always pass --model banana explicitly.
• snapai auto-enhances prompts — you don't need to over-specify; the CLI adds its own refinements
• Use --pro for quality, and for multiple variants — during iteration, if the user wants higher fidelity, add the --pro flag. Plain --model banana (no --pro) only supports -n 1; use --pro to generate more than one variant.
• Transparent backgrounds — only available with snapai's gpt-1 and gpt-1.5 model aliases (snapai's shorthand for OpenAI's gpt-image-1 and gpt-image-1.5); not supported by the default gpt-2 (OpenAI's gpt-image-2) or by Banana/Gemini models. Mention this if the user asks for transparency.
• Icon composition — always remind the user that icons should have a single, recognizable element; avoid text or complex scenes