| name | ikenga-artifact-builder |
| description | Author a self-contained interactive HTML artifact (dashboard, view,
comparison, mockup) that renders standalone in any browser AND lights up
with live data when opened inside the Ikenga shell. Replaces .md for
visual/interactive/data-bearing outputs.
TRIGGER when: the user asks for a dashboard, view, summary-as-page,
comparison, mockup, prototype, "make me an HTML…", or any output where
interactivity or live data adds value over static text. Also trigger when
CLAUDE.md / memory has a rule preferring artifacts over .md for visual
outputs.
DO NOT TRIGGER for: prose, technical writeups, decision docs, READMEs,
long-form explanations, code reviews — those stay as .md.
|
| license | BUSL-1.1 |
Ikenga Artifact Builder
You produce single-file HTML artifacts that:
- Render standalone in any browser (claude.ai's artifact viewer included).
- Light up with live data when opened inside the Ikenga shell.
- Are easy to share, review, paste into chat, and iterate on.
When to produce an artifact vs a .md file
| Situation | Output |
|---|
| Dashboard, KPIs, charts | Artifact |
| Comparison table the user will scan/sort | Artifact |
| UI mockup, prototype, design exploration | Artifact |
| Anything with live data (SQL, Supabase, API, MCP) | Artifact |
| Status page the user wants to refresh | Artifact |
| Prose, writeups, decision docs, READMEs | .md |
| Step-by-step instructions, runbooks | .md |
| Code reviews, technical analysis | .md |
If unsure, ask: "will the user interact with this, or just read it?" Interact → artifact. Read → markdown.
The hard rules
- Single self-contained HTML file unless the user explicitly asks for a folder/multi-page artifact.
- Must render with no network access — include a
<script id="ikenga-mock-data" type="application/json"> block with realistic mock data, and the page must use it as a fallback when the bridge is absent or sources fail.
- No
eval, no Function(...), no document.write — claude.ai's artifact viewer blocks them, and our shell's CSP does too.
- No external network in the static layer unless declared in
dataSources. CDN imports (React, Tailwind, the bridge) are fine; ad-hoc fetch calls are not.
- Manifest is mandatory as
<script type="application/json" id="ikenga-manifest">…</script>. The fallback block in it is mandatory for any artifact you intend to share.
If you can't satisfy these, write a .md instead and tell the user why.
File layout
Single-file (default)
output.html ← the whole artifact, including manifest, mock data, styles, code
Folder (only when user asks for assets, sub-pages, or large data)
my-artifact/
├── index.html
├── manifest.json
├── data/
│ └── mock.json
└── assets/
└── logo.svg
Single-file template
Start from this skeleton. Fill in the marked regions; do not restructure.
<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="utf-8" />
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1" />
<title>{{ARTIFACT NAME}}</title>
<script type="application/json" id="ikenga-manifest">
{
"format": "ikenga-artifact",
"formatVersion": "0.1",
"id": "{{kebab-case-id}}",
"name": "{{Human Name}}",
"version": "0.1.0",
"description": "{{One-line purpose.}}",
"license": "BUSL-1.1",
"icon": { "lucide": "{{lucide-icon-name}}" },
"dataSources": {
},
"fallback": {
"mode": "mock",
"dataTag": "ikenga-mock-data",
:
},
: {
: ,
: ,
:
},
: { : , : }
}
Initializing…
Note on JSX + Babel. data-presets="env,react" enables JSX. The artifact opens directly in any browser (file://, claude.ai, Ikenga shell) without a build step. Inside Ikenga, the shell pre-injects @babel/standalone into the artifact iframe, so the artifact's <script src> resolves from cache (~300KB paid once per shell session, not per artifact).
Why UMD + IIFE, not ESM + top-level await. <script type="text/babel" data-type="module"> with ESM imports and top-level await produces silent blank pages with current Babel-standalone — validated empirically while building the v0 examples. The UMD-globals + plain-text/babel + IIFE-async pattern above survives in every host we tested (file://, claude.ai's artifact viewer, the Launch preview panel). Revisit when Babel-standalone's module mode hardens.
Why pinned CDN versions. Unpinned URLs (react@18, @babel/standalone@7) occasionally serve a breaking minor that bricks all artifacts referencing them. Always pin to a tested patch (react@18.3.1, @babel/standalone@7.25.6).
Data source types
Every entry in dataSources has a type, type-specific config, and a refresh block.
supabase
{
"type": "supabase",
"table": "v_cash_position",
"select": "id, amount, currency, as_of",
"filter": [["currency", "eq", "USD"]],
"refresh": { "mode": "interval", "every": "15m", "onFocus": true }
}
Outside Ikenga: returns mock data from the dataTag block. Inside Ikenga: bridge resolves Supabase project from manifest's host context, RLS applies as the current user.
sql (local SQLite)
{
"type": "sql",
"db": "ikenga.local",
"query": "select * from ar_aging_view",
"params": [],
"refresh": { "mode": "manual" }
}
Read-only. Bind parameters via params. Outside Ikenga: mock.
fetch (HTTP)
{
"type": "fetch",
"url": "https://api.example.com/fx/today",
"method": "GET",
"headers": {},
"refresh": { "mode": "interval", "every": "1h" }
}
Network host added to the artifact's CSP allowlist automatically. Outside Ikenga: bridge attempts the fetch directly (subject to browser CORS); falls back to mock on failure.
mcp
{
"type": "mcp",
"server": "royalti-cms",
"tool": "findPosts",
"args": { "limit": 10 },
"refresh": { "mode": "manual" }
}
Inside Ikenga only — bridge routes through the shell's MCP registry. Outside: mock.
file (local watched file)
{
"type": "file",
"path": "./data/last_run.json",
"refresh": { "mode": "watch" }
}
Folder-mode only. Bridge watches via shell's fs_watch. Outside: reads once if reachable, else mock.
refresh modes
{ "mode": "manual" } — only when art.source(name).refresh() is called.{ "mode": "interval", "every": "15m" } — 1s, 30s, 5m, 1h, 1d etc.{ "mode": "interval", "every": "15m", "onFocus": true } — also refresh when pane regains focus.{ "mode": "watch" } — file/realtime sources only.
Compatibility constraints
- No
eval, Function, document.write.
- No inline event handlers (
onclick="…", onload="…"). React onClick={fn} JSX is fine — it's a property, not an HTML attribute. Inline style="…" is also fine.
- CSP-friendly. Prefer Tailwind classes or
<style> blocks over inline style= attributes when practical.
- CDN imports only from:
esm.sh, cdn.skypack.dev, cdn.tailwindcss.com, cdn.jsdelivr.net. Anything else needs to be declared in dataSources (and thus in the network allowlist). Drop unpkg.com — esm.sh/jsdelivr are strictly better.
- Pin CDN versions. Use
react@18.3.1, @babel/standalone@7.25.6, etc. Unpinned URLs occasionally serve breaking minors and silently brick artifacts.
- Entry HTML ≤ 500KB (warn) / 2MB (error). Folder-mode
assets/ and data/ are uncapped.
- No service workers, no
localStorage for sensitive data. Use art.state.set/get (host-mediated, SQLite-backed inside Ikenga, localStorage fallback in plain browser).
- Visible "Initializing…" placeholder + visible init-error panel. A blank page during dev means you can't tell whether HTML failed, CSS failed, or JS failed. Use the patterns in the template; don't omit them.
Notes-back loop (auto-wired)
The bridge auto-injects a floating "💬 comment" button in the bottom-right of every artifact. Click → comment mode (cursor crosshair, click any element to attach a note → text input → send). Modal toggle, off by default — your own click handlers are untouched when comment mode is off.
In ikenga and preview-cli hosts, notes route back to the originating chat session with a marker linking to the artifact + selector. In plain browser host, the button is hidden (no chat to route to).
To opt out (printable reports, embedded widgets, anywhere the chrome would be wrong):
"notes": { "enabled": false }
Explicit API still available when an artifact has its own feedback UI:
art.notes.send("This chart needs a 90-day toggle", { selector: "#cash-chart" });
Style guidance
- Default to system fonts + Tailwind — looks clean, ships nothing extra.
- Respect
prefers-color-scheme: light + dark variants via Tailwind's dark: modifier.
- Density: dashboards skew dense (people scan). Mockups skew spacious. Pick one and commit.
- Don't reinvent chart libraries — for any non-trivial chart, import
recharts or apache-echarts via esm.sh. For sparklines or single-metric tiles, hand-rolled SVG is fine and lighter.
- Keep total visual elements ≤ 7 per screen. If you have more, split into tabs or sub-pages (folder mode).
- Design tokens are optional. Default template uses raw Tailwind. Artifacts that should match shell visual identity can import
@ikenga/tokens via the --with-tokens preview flag. Don't import unless asked.
Workflow
- Clarify scope. If the user's ask is ambiguous (e.g., "make me a dashboard"), ask one clarifying question: what data, what timeframe, what's the primary decision they're making with it. Don't ask more than one — unblock and iterate.
- Sketch data sources. List every piece of data the artifact needs. For each, decide source type and refresh mode. Write the
dataSources block first, then mock-data to match.
- Build the React tree. Use the
useSource(art, name) hook (in the template) — it returns [value, refresh] and handles subscribe/unsubscribe. One call per source. Avoid hand-rolling useEffect subscriptions unless you have a reason to.
- Write the fallback path. Confirm the artifact renders correctly with mock data alone (close the live data subscriptions, reload — does it still work?).
- Self-check the compatibility rules. No eval, no inline handlers, file size, CSP. Run the checklist before delivering.
- Deliver. Tell the user where the file is, how to open it (just open in a browser, or open in Ikenga for live data), and what to do next (review, leave notes, ask for changes).
Self-check before delivering
If any box is unchecked, fix before delivering.
Bridge surface (cheat sheet)
Inside the IIFE, after init():
art.source(name).get();
art.source(name).subscribe(fn);
art.source(name).refresh();
art.host.kind;
art.host.user;
art.host.usedFallback(name);
art.host.anyFallback();
art.state.get(key);
art.state.set(key, value);
art.state.subscribe(key, fn);
art.notes.send(text, { selector });
art.pin();
Worked examples
Three references, in order of complexity. Open the source of each before writing your own.
references/hello-world.html — minimal, single fetch source, ~150 lines. Smallest valid artifact. Read first.references/cfo-daily.html — financial dashboard, four data sources (supabase + sql + fetch + file), three refresh modes (interval / manual / watch), ~330 lines. Tests numerical/tabular data, KPI tiles, AR aging table with overdue highlighting, FX rates, cash-by-account bar chart.references/ceo-overview.html — exec digest, six sources spanning all four types (kpis supabase, agent_runs + calendar mcp, notifications sql, recent_docs file, team_signals fetch), ~470 lines. Tests narrative + structured signals + cross-artifact links (the cfo-bot agent run links to cfo-daily.html). The shape of most real-world artifacts beyond charts.
Use these as the canonical reference for shape, not styling. Copy structure, not visual choices. The polyfill block in each is identical — when @ikenga/artifact ships, all three will swap their inline polyfill for one CDN import without touching the App code.
