Build with AI: Agent Skills and MCP server

Set up AI coding assistants with Polotno skills, live documentation search, and machine-readable documentation.

Polotno provides official tools for AI coding assistants. These tools include skills, live documentation search, and machine-readable documentation.

Quickest start

Paste one line into any agent. Integrating or customizing the editor:

Read https://polotno.com/skills/sdk.md and follow it.

Producing designs:

Read https://polotno.com/skills/design.md and follow it.

The agent installs or updates the matching skill and uses it. The sections below cover the same setup by agent.

Install skills

Skills are instruction packages that an agent loads when it needs them. The Polotno skills repository provides two skills:

polotno-sdk is for developers integrating or customizing the editor: API patterns, a capability map, and live documentation lookup.
polotno-design is for people producing designs: editable designs, visual proofs, exports, and data variants.

Claude Code

Install both skills and the documentation MCP server:

claude plugin marketplace add polotno-project/skills
claude plugin install polotno@polotno

Or from within a Claude Code session:

/plugin marketplace add polotno-project/skills
/plugin install polotno@polotno

Run this command to update the plugin:

claude plugin update polotno@polotno

Claude Code disables automatic updates for third-party marketplaces by default. Use /plugin, select Marketplaces, and enable automatic updates if you want them.

After an update, start a new session or run /reload-plugins.

ChatGPT desktop app and Codex

Install the native Polotno plugin:

codex plugin marketplace add polotno-project/skills
codex plugin add polotno@polotno

This plugin contains skills only. It does not start the optional documentation MCP server.

Add the documentation MCP server to Codex separately:

codex mcp add polotno-documentation -- npx crawl-chat-mcp --id=67e312247a822a2303f2b8a7 --name=polotno_documentation

After an update, start a new thread. Restart the ChatGPT desktop app if it does not load the new version.

Run these commands to get a current version:

codex plugin marketplace upgrade polotno
codex plugin add polotno@polotno

Cursor, Copilot, Windsurf, Cline, and other agents

npx skills add polotno-project/skills

This installs both skills. Add --skill polotno-sdk if you only integrate the editor, or --skill polotno-design if you only produce designs. The skills CLI detects supported agents and installs each skill in the agent's native format.

Run this command to update installed copies:

npx skills update

Manual setup

For manual setup, copy the required skill directory from the repository.

Keep SKILL.md with its referenced files and scripts. A single instructions file does not provide the complete design skill.

Live documentation search (MCP)

The SDK skill uses live documentation to prevent stale API details. The Claude Code plugin includes this MCP server.

For another MCP-compatible agent, add this server to its MCP configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "polotno-documentation": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "crawl-chat-mcp",
        "--id=67e312247a822a2303f2b8a7",
        "--name=polotno_documentation"
      ]
    }
  }
}

The server uses stdio transport and indexes both the documentation and the community forum. Works with Cursor, Cline, and any MCP-compatible editor. Requires Node.js 18+.

The same search powers the AI assistant widget on this docs site and on the community forum — ask questions like "How do I resize a page?" for instant cited answers.

Machine-readable docs

Markdown version of any docs page — append .md to the URL, e.g. /docs/store.md. Clean markdown, no navigation or scripts.
llms.txt — an LLM-oriented index of Polotno: core concepts, product pages, and documentation links.
llms-full.txt — the complete documentation as a single markdown document, for agents that want everything in one request.
AI info page — a condensed product brief for AI assistants.

Alternatives

Context7 also serves up-to-date Polotno documentation via MCP:

npx ctx7 setup

Use flags to target a specific editor: --cursor, --claude, --opencode. A free API key from context7.com/dashboard is recommended for higher rate limits.

Design with an agent

Polotno App is a native design editor for Mac with a built-in MCP server. Connect ChatGPT, Claude, or any MCP client, and the agent gets real design tools: it creates and edits designs while you work on the same files in the editor. The polotno-design skill uses the app as its runtime when it is running.

What you can ask

Once set up, your assistant can answer with sources:

API questions – "What properties does TextElement have?"
Code examples – "How to add a rounded rectangle?"
Troubleshooting – "Why isn't my custom font loading?"

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