AINDF

What the AINDF MCP server does

The AINDF MCP server gives an AI agent a read-only view of one bundled design system. Instead of allowing the agent to invent HTML, CSS, or unsupported component values, it provides the information needed to construct screen configurations from the bundle. The configuration is tied to one version of the design system.

The bundle describes seven source areas: tokens, taxonomy, slots, applicability, presets, components, and bindings. Agents can query the available components, slots, modifiers, and presets, then use validate-screen to check whether a proposed screen follows the bundle. Invalid configurations are rejected with errors such as a component property that the design system does not define. The server does not update the design system; missing capabilities must be added to the design system separately and with approval.

How it works

First, the design-system sources are listed in aindf.config.json. The AINDF kit checks that configuration and bundles the sources into one aindf.bundle.json file. The MCP process receives the bundle path and serves it to the connected agent over stdio.

A typical workflow is:

• The agent asks what components, slots, modifiers, and presets are available.
• The agent creates a screen configuration pinned to the bundle version.
• The agent calls validate-screen.
• If validation fails, the agent reports the missing or unsupported definition instead of adding an ad hoc value.
• Once validation passes, a builder can create the screen from the approved configuration.

Updating the design system requires producing a new bundle version. Existing screens can then be moved to that version with the repository's repin workflow.

Setup and configuration

The AINDF MCP server requires Node.js 20.10 or newer. The kit can be run from a repository clone or through npm. From the design-system directory, check the source configuration and create a bundle:

npx -y @ai-native-design-framework/kit check aindf.config.json
npx -y @ai-native-design-framework/kit bundle aindf.config.json --out aindf.bundle.json

Register the resulting file with Claude Code using:

claude mcp add aindf -- npx -y @ai-native-design-framework/kit mcp /absolute/path/to/aindf.bundle.json

Other agents can run the same node or npx MCP command as a stdio server in their MCP settings. The repository also provides a Claude Code plugin, and the aindf-screen-author skill can be installed with the skills CLI for agents that do not use that plugin.

Tools and capabilities

The AINDF MCP server supports read-only discovery of the bundle's design-system definitions. Its documented agent-facing operations include lookups for:

• Components
• Slots
• Modifiers
• Presets
• Screen validation through validate-screen

These capabilities are intended for screen configuration authoring. They do not imply that the server can edit source files, change the design system, or accept arbitrary CSS values.

Limitations and notes

The server is designed around one AINDF bundle at a time, so the screen configuration must remain pinned to that bundle's version. A configuration can only use what the bundle exposes. If a required component, property, token, or other definition is absent, validation will not make it available; the design system must be updated and rebuilt instead.

The MCP command is a stdio server command, and the bundle path must be absolute in the documented setup. The repository describes the server as read-only. Screen building is a separate step from querying and validation, while the optional plugin supplies authoring instructions rather than changing the server's underlying bundle.