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Electron Desktop App Automation

Drive Electron desktop apps like Slack or VS Code by reading and clicking their UI via a debug port

Source Download skill
Repository
vercel-labs/agent-browser
Stars
45,202
Licence
Apache-2.0
Files
1 file

What it does

This skill teaches an AI agent how to control desktop applications built with Electron (such as Slack, VS Code, Discord, Figma, Notion or Spotify). Electron apps are essentially Chromium browsers in a window, so the agent relaunches the app with a remote debugging port turned on, connects to it with the agent-browser tool, reads a snapshot of the interface, and then clicks, types, takes screenshots or extracts text as needed.

Great for

  • Developers who want an agent to test their own Electron application end to end
  • Power users who want to automate repetitive clicking or data pulling in a desktop app that has no API
  • Anyone who needs to script several Electron apps at once using named sessions

Skip it if

  • Apps that are not built on Electron, since the workflow depends on the Chromium debugging port; the skill does not help with native or Qt apps
  • Use on accounts or messages you do not control or where automation may breach an app's terms of service, because the agent can read and send content as you
  • Sensitive work where a relaunched app with an open debugging port could be reached by other local processes; the port is unauthenticated while open

Try asking

  • “Automate Slack: open the app with remote debugging on port 9222, then find and click the channel named #general”
  • “Test this Electron app: connect to my running build, snapshot the settings window and report broken buttons”
  • “Take a screenshot of my Figma window and save it as figma-state.png”
  • “Extract the visible text from the Notion page and save it to a JSON file”
Step-by-step guide: how to use Electron Desktop App AutomationInstall, first run, examples, tips and FAQs

Install in 3 steps

  1. 1

    Download the skill

    The ZIP contains the 1 original files, the Apache-2.0 licence and an attribution note.

    electron.zip
  2. 2

    Add it to your agent

    Claude Code (all projects)

    mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills && unzip electron.zip -d ~/.claude/skills/

    Claude Code / Agent SDK (this project only)

    mkdir -p .claude/skills && unzip electron.zip -d .claude/skills/

    Claude apps (web/desktop): Settings → Capabilities → Skills → Upload skill, and choose the ZIP.

  3. 3

    Ask for the task

    No special command needed — the agent reads the skill's description and loads it when your request matches. Try one of the prompts above.

Get better results

  • Quit the app fully before relaunching with the debugging flag, since the flag only takes effect at launch time
  • Use named sessions such as --session slack and --session vscode when controlling more than one app, and re-snapshot after each navigation
  • Close the debugging port or relaunch the app normally when you finish, so no unauthenticated port stays open on your machine

What's inside

  • SKILL.md

Redistributed unmodified from vercel-labs/agent-browser under the Apache-2.0 licence. The assessment was drafted with AI from the skill's files on 2026-10-29. Skills can instruct your agent to run code — read SKILL.md and any scripts before installing.