Claude altered my relationship with Macs. I'm creating my own apps, and it's a joy.

      A few days ago, a colleague of mine requested a favor. They needed some iOS and macOS screenshots transformed into a mockup image featuring the UI displayed on an iPhone and a MacBook. The challenge? It was 3 am PST, making it impractical to reach out to any of my design team members.

      While there are several online tools available for this, many either require a subscription (like Canva) or necessitate signing up for usage credits after a limited number of free trials. Additionally, these editors restrict you to a few design presets. I decided to use Anthropic’s Claude, and in under half an hour, I had created a screenshot-to-mockup editor for the whole team to utilize. Check it out:

      Nadeem Sarwar / Digital Trends

      I named it Framely, of course. It operates in a browser tab and doesn't require an internet connection. Nothing is uploaded to a cloud server, so I don't have to worry about privacy either. Framely produces unique backgrounds and functions beautifully. All I have to do is drag in a screenshot, choose the device, and export it as a JPEG.

      I never saw the underlying code, and the entire editing application only takes up 8MB of space. Even when it came to fixing bugs or making updates, I just described the changes, and Claude took care of everything behind the scenes. I also managed to make the entire editing tool feel native to macOS by adopting Apple’s Liquid Glass design language, complete with a toggle for dark and light mode.

      Building is exhilarating

      This is not the first web tool or app I’ve developed using Claude. So far, I've created Chrome extensions, a Mac app that replaced Grammarly for my needs, a motion-sensing utility for my AirPods to monitor my posture, and more. I have a few more ideas in the development stage, and I'm eager to share them.

      I won’t label myself a builder. I can’t code, nor do I understand the finer details of UI design. All I know is what I want to create, and using only voice commands, I have Claude construct these tools and utilities for me.

      Nadeem Sarwar / Digital Trends

      This is a pivotal moment for how we engage with computers.

      I am speaking more and typing less. I can present several arguments to persuade you to embrace this innovative way of using computers and creating your own software. Firstly, when you develop an app for personal use, you have complete control over the features you desire, while easily discarding any jargon you wish to bypass. There are no unnecessary features. You also have total control over the UX design.

      For instance, I recently designed an entirely offline Grammarly editor as a menu bar utility. The concept blends Antinote, one of my favorite apps, along with Grammarly. I simply provided the design guidelines to Claude, and it recommended using the Harper engine for grammar and spell checks. This way, I not only avoided purchasing another app but gained complete control over my writing and data.

      When I create an app for myself, I can fully manage the privacy aspect. I don’t have to deal with concerns about data harvesting. I no longer need to worry about hidden trackers or activity loggers. It’s widely known that in the modern era, free software often comes with a compromise on privacy. As the tech saying goes, if it’s free, you’re likely the product.

      Another huge advantage is that you don’t have to wait for updates to fix bugs or introduce new features. It becomes effortless, especially when using a tool like Claude. The code resides on your device. A simple voice command (or natural language text instruction) prompts Claude to take action, make the necessary changes (or upgrades), while displaying the modifications in real-time.

      Many reasons to create for oneself

      Earlier today, in just two hours, I developed a minimalist word processor containing all the essential features I need for my newsroom work, while avoiding all the unnecessary tools I never use. The original concept was a purely minimalist UI, and the entire prototype ran in a browser tab while consuming less than 200MB of memory on a machine with an aging Intel Core i3 processor. The package file size came in under 20MB, which is astounding.

      Nadeem Sarwar / Digital Trends

      After some initial testing, I asked Claude to enhance the UI and give it a macOS 27 Golden Gate Liquid Glass appearance, including a toggle for dark and light mode. The final outcome had a beautiful gradient look, showcasing Apple’s signature rounded UI elements. It felt as if the word processor was designed by Apple’s in-house team.

      All of this was achieved without my ever seeing or writing a line of code. I simply described what I wanted to Claude and saw the visual editor reflect the changes in real-time. And I didn't even need to use the more advanced Claude Fable 5. Anthropic’s less powerful Claude Opus model managed the task quite