Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about App Factory and how it works.
What is App Factory?
App Factory is an AI-native pipeline that transforms market research into production-ready mobile apps. It uses Claude (Opus 4.5) to execute a 10-stage workflow that researches markets, generates validated ideas, creates specifications, and builds complete React Native apps.
What apps does App Factory build?
App Factory builds subscription-based React Native mobile apps using Expo. Each app includes RevenueCat integration for subscriptions, proper navigation, onboarding flows, paywalls, and all assets needed for App Store and Google Play submission.
How does selective execution work?
The "run app factory" command generates 10 ranked app ideas in an "idea bin". You can review these ideas and choose which ones to build using "build <idea>". This selective model lets you invest compute only in concepts you want to pursue.
What is the 'truth is files on disk' principle?
App Factory treats filesystem artifacts as the source of truth. Every stage writes JSON artifacts validated against schemas. If it's not on disk with a valid schema, it didn't happen. This ensures determinism and auditability.
What are quality gates?
Quality gates are hard validation checkpoints at stages 02.5, 02.7, 09.5, and 10.1. They verify that specifications are complete and consistent before code generation begins. If validation fails, the pipeline stops immediately.
Can I customize the pipeline?
The pipeline stages and templates are configurable. You can modify stage templates in the templates/agents/ directory and schemas in the schemas/ directory. However, the core execution model is fixed to ensure deterministic output.
What do I need to run App Factory?
You need Claude Code (Opus 4.5) for pipeline execution, Node.js 18+ for the generated apps, and Expo CLI for testing. The generated apps are offline-first and require minimal additional infrastructure.
Do I own the apps I generate?
Yes. Apps generated by App Factory are yours. You can submit them to app stores, sell them, or do whatever you want with them. App Factory is open source under MIT license.
What's the 'offline-first bias'?
App Factory prioritizes apps that work offline with minimal backend dependencies. This reduces operational costs, enables faster iteration, and results in more shippable apps. Backend-heavy apps require explicit justification.
How do I preview generated apps?
Generated apps include a preview system. After building, you can use 'npx expo start' in the app directory to launch the development server. The dashboard also provides one-click preview functionality for iOS and Android simulators.
What happens if a stage fails?
App Factory follows a fail-fast approach. If any stage fails validation, it writes a detailed error report and stops immediately. There are no partial success states. You can fix the issue and re-run the failing stage.
Can I use my own app ideas?
Yes! The "dream <idea_text>" command lets you provide a raw app idea as text. App Factory will validate it against market evidence and run it through the full pipeline to produce a store-ready app.