# AI App Builder
> Part of the NocoDB documentation (Apps). Index of all pages: https://nocodb.com/llms.txt. Any docs page is available as Markdown by adding `.md` to its URL.
URL: https://nocodb.com/docs/apps/app-builder
Last updated: 2026-10-05
Build and change enterprise-grade work apps in NocoDB's AI app builder: describe a change to NocoAI in the chat, and test it in the live preview.
Add a page that lists [open requests] sorted by [due date]
Add a button on [the booking page] that sends [a confirmation email]
Let only [the managers team] [approve expenses]
Change the home page to show [this week's numbers] at the top
NocoDB's **AI app builder** is the page where you build an app with AI. It has a live preview of the app and the [NocoAI](/docs/product/noco-ai) chat. You describe a change in the chat. NocoAI changes the app, and the preview updates. The AI app builder has no visual editor: you make every change through the chat.
To open the AI app builder, open the base and click **App** in the mini sidebar.
## Parts of the app builder
| Part | What it does |
| ----------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Topbar** | Holds the preview controls, the app address, **Viewing as**, the screen width, **Full screen** and **Deploy**. |
| **Preview** | Runs the current build of the app. You can click through it and test it with real data. Before the first build, it shows "Describe what you'd like to build in the chat. Your app will appear here." |
| **Chat** | The NocoAI chat. It opens automatically for builders. If you close it, click **Expand chat** in the topbar to open it again. |
The topbar has these controls:
| Control | What it does |
| ---------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Back**, **Forward**, **Refresh** | Move through the pages of the preview, or load the page again. |
| App address | Shows the address of the app. Click the address to copy it. Click **Open app** to open the deployed app in a new tab. |
| Build status | Shows **Building…** while NocoAI changes the app, and **Build failed** when a build does not complete. Hover over **Build failed** to see the error. |
| **Viewing as** | Shows the preview as a member of a team would see it. See [Preview as a team](#preview-as-a-team). |
| Screen width | Shows the preview at **Desktop width**, **Tablet width** or **Mobile width**. |
| **Full screen** | Shows the AI app builder in full screen. Click **Exit full screen** to go back. |
| **Deploy** | Makes the current build live at the app address. See [Deploy an app](/docs/apps/deploy-app). |
## Build with the chat
1. In the chat, describe the change. Give one goal at a time, or a list of related changes.
2. Send the message. NocoAI shows a **Plan** card with its steps and the progress, for example "3/7".
3. Wait for the build. The topbar shows **Building…**. The preview updates when the build is complete.
4. When the app is ready, the chat shows a card with **Open app**, **Publish** and **Keep editing**.
Only one person can build an app at a time. When another builder is at work, the chat shows "\[name] is building…". Wait until that build is complete.
## What NocoAI can build
NocoAI changes more than the pages of the app. In one conversation it can:
| Area | Examples |
| ------------------------ | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Pages and navigation** | Screens, menus, forms, lists, dashboards and the layout of each page. |
| **Tables and fields** | New tables and fields in the base, when the app needs data that the base does not have. |
| **Actions** | The operations that the app runs: create, read, update and delete records, run custom code, or call a connection. NocoAI tests the actions that it writes. |
| **Connections** | The external services that the app needs, for example an email or AI provider. See [Connections](/docs/apps/connections). |
| **Teams and access** | Teams, the actions that each team can run, and record rules such as "members see only their own records". See [Members and teams](/docs/apps/members-and-teams). |
| **Public pages** | Pages that visitors can open without an account. See [Public access](/docs/apps/public-access). |
| **Workflows** | NocoDB [workflows](/docs/workflows) for scheduled and event-based work, for example a daily reminder. |
## Fix errors
When the preview hits an error, the chat shows **Something broke on \[page]**. Click **Fix it**. The chat fills in a message that describes the error. Send it, or add details first.
When a build does not complete, the topbar shows **Build failed**. Hover over it to read the error, then ask NocoAI to fix it in the chat.
## Preview as a team
Each team sees only the pages and actions that it can use. To check what a team sees, click **Viewing as** in the topbar and select the team. The preview loads again as a member of that team.
## Good to know
* Changes in the AI app builder do not reach the people who use the app until you [deploy](/docs/apps/deploy-app). The preview always shows the current build.
* NocoAI uses [credits](/docs/product/workspaces/credits) for each build. When the workspace has no credits left, the chat tells you. Workspace owners can buy more credits from the chat.
* Use **Mobile width** to check how the app looks on a phone before you deploy.
## Related
* [Create an app](/docs/apps/create-app)
* [Deploy an app](/docs/apps/deploy-app)
* [App settings](/docs/apps/app-settings)
* [Vibe coding with NocoDB Apps](/docs/apps/vibe-coding)
* [Data for apps](/docs/apps/data)
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## Related pages
- [Apps](https://nocodb.com/docs/apps.md): NocoDB Apps is an AI app builder for creating enterprise-grade work apps: describe the app, and NocoAI builds it on the data you already have, with teams, permissions, an API and an MCP server.
- [Vibe Coding with NocoDB Apps](https://nocodb.com/docs/apps/vibe-coding.md): Vibe coding is making software by describing it to AI. NocoDB Apps bring vibe coding to enterprise-grade work apps, on your own data, with teams, permissions and safe deploys.
- [Create an App](https://nocodb.com/docs/apps/create-app.md): Create a NocoDB app with AI: describe the app, and NocoAI builds it on your data. Start from the App tile in a base, with Build with AI, or in the NocoAI chat.
- [Data for Apps](https://nocodb.com/docs/apps/data.md): Build NocoDB apps on the data you already have: NocoDB tables, your own PostgreSQL or MySQL database, and data that syncs from tools such as GitHub and HubSpot, with no record limit.
- [Secure Vibe Coding](https://nocodb.com/docs/apps/security.md): How NocoDB Apps keep AI-built work apps safe: teams and action grants, record rules, reviewed public pages, secrets in connections, scoped API tokens, environments and version restore.
- [Members and Teams](https://nocodb.com/docs/apps/members-and-teams.md): Control who can use a NocoDB app and what they can do in it with app teams, members and action grants.
- [Public Access](https://nocodb.com/docs/apps/public-access.md): Make pages of a NocoDB app public, and choose which actions visitors can run without signing in.
- [Deploy an App](https://nocodb.com/docs/apps/deploy-app.md): Deploy a NocoDB app to make the current build live at its address, review risky changes before they go live, and restore an earlier version.