Tools.AIBridge 1.0.11

AI Bridge

Pack your code → Paste into any AI chatbot → Apply changes back. No API keys, no extensions, no lock-in.

AI Bridge is a lightweight CLI tool that bridges your local codebase and browser-based AI chatbots (Claude, Gemini, Qwen, ChatGPT). It works with any language or technology — .NET, Node.js, Python, React, Go, Rust, or any project with a sensible folder structure.

💡 Why AI Bridge?

• No API keys — Use the free tiers of Claude, Gemini, Qwen, or ChatGPT directly in your browser.
• No vendor lock-in — Switch AI providers mid-conversation. Your workflow stays the same.
• Language-agnostic — Works with any language or framework, not just the ones your IDE supports.
• No extensions or agents — Just a CLI tool and a browser-based AI chat. Nothing running in the background.
• You stay in control — Every change is explicit: you see it, you paste it, you apply it.

🎬 Quick Demo

🎥 Watch on YouTube →

🌟 The Big Picture

AI Bridge offers two modes depending on your project size:

1. Simple Mode (Quick Start): Perfect for small projects. You pack your entire codebase, give it to the AI, and get code back.

2. Advanced Mode (Index Flow): Designed for large codebases. You map your project once, and then only upload the specific files the AI requests — saving tokens and reducing noise.

3. Optional: MCP Server: A local .NET server you can run alongside the CLI to let AI clients (like Claude Desktop) connect directly and apply changes without you having to copy/paste. Read the MCP Guide here.

⚙️ Prerequisites & Installation

• .NET 10 SDK installed on your machine.
• Git installed and on your PATH. AI Bridge uses git ls-files to automatically respect your .gitignore rules.
• A browser AI account (Claude, Gemini, Qwen, or ChatGPT).

Install the tool globally using the .NET CLI:

dotnet tool install --global Tools.AIBridge

(To update later: dotnet tool update --global Tools.AIBridge) — View on NuGet →

<details> <summary><b>⚡ TL;DR — Try it in 60 seconds</b></summary>

dotnet tool install --global Tools.AIBridge
cd /path/to/your-project
ai-bridge init
ai-bridge pack
# Upload ai-bridge/1-SimpleMode/*.md + ai-bridge/artifacts/*-context.txt to your AI
# Copy the AI's XML response, then:
ai-bridge apply --paste

</details>

🚀 Getting Started

Open your terminal, navigate to your project directory, and run the init command.

cd /path/to/your-project
ai-bridge init

What it does: It scaffolds the following structure in your project:

YourProjectRoot/
├── .aiignore                           <-- Custom exclusion rules (Tracked)
└── ai-bridge/                          <-- The AI Bridge workspace
    ├── 1-SimpleMode/                   <-- Templates for quick, small tasks
    ├── 2-AdvancedMode/                 <-- Templates for large project mapping
    └── artifacts/                      <-- Scratchpad for context and AI responses

Excluding Files with .aiignore

The .aiignore file (created by ai-bridge init) works like .gitignore — add glob patterns to exclude files from being packed into AI context. Use it for test fixtures, generated code, large data files, or anything the AI doesn't need to see.

🟢 Simple Mode (For Small Projects)

Use this mode if your codebase is small enough to fit comfortably inside a single AI prompt window.

flowchart LR
    A["🗂️ Codebase"] -- "ai-bridge pack" --> B["📄 *-context.txt"]
    B -- "Upload + Prompts" --> C["🤖 AI Chatbot"]
    C -- "Copy XML Response" --> D["ai-bridge apply --paste"]
    D --> E["✅ Files Updated"]

1. Pack Your Project

Run the pack command to bundle your codebase into text files.

ai-bridge pack

This generates *-context.txt files inside ai-bridge/artifacts/. (It automatically respects .gitignore, skips binary files, and applies .aiignore).

2. Chat with the AI

1. Open your AI (Claude, Gemini, Qwen, or ChatGPT).
2. Upload the System Prompt: ai-bridge/1-SimpleMode/ai-system-prompt.md
3. Upload the Protocol Skill: ai-bridge/1-SimpleMode/ai-response-skill.md
4. Upload your Context Files: The *-context.txt files from the artifacts/ folder. (Skip this step if starting a brand new project!)
5. Ask the AI to write your feature or fix a bug.

3. Apply the Changes

Option 1 — Clipboard: Copy the AI's XML response and run:

ai-bridge apply --paste

Option 2 — File: Save the XML to ai-bridge/artifacts/ai-response.xml and run:

ai-bridge apply

🔴 Advanced Mode (For Large Projects)

If you have a large codebase, uploading your entire project every time uses more tokens and can reduce AI response quality. Advanced Mode solves this by creating a lightweight index.xml map of your project.

Phase 1: Create the Index (One-Time Setup)

Before chatting, the AI needs to map out your existing project.

1. Run ai-bridge pack to gather your full context.
2. Start a new AI chat and upload:
   • ai-bridge/2-AdvancedMode/Phase1-CreateIndex/ai-create-index-system-prompt.md
   • All the *-context.txt files from artifacts/.
3. The AI will output an XML map of your project. Save this output exactly as ai-bridge/index.xml.

Phase 2: The Daily Workflow

Now that you have an index, you never need to upload huge context files again!

flowchart LR
    A["💬 Ask feature"] -->|AI requests files| B["ai-bridge apply --paste"]
    B -->|Upload context| C["🤖 AI generates code"]
    C -->|Copy response| D["ai-bridge apply --paste"]
    D --> E["✅ Updated"]

1. Start a fresh AI Chat.
2. Upload the System Prompt and your Index:
   • ai-bridge/2-AdvancedMode/Phase2-DailyChat/ai-index-system-prompt.md
   • ai-bridge/index.xml (Skip uploading this if starting a brand new project)
3. Upload the 3 Required Skills (so the AI knows how to communicate):
   • ai-bridge/2-AdvancedMode/Phase2-DailyChat/ai-request-skill.md
   • ai-bridge/2-AdvancedMode/Phase2-DailyChat/ai-response-skill.md
   • ai-bridge/2-AdvancedMode/Phase2-DailyChat/ai-update-index-skill.md
4. Ask for a feature.
5. Fulfill the Request:
   • The AI will output an XML request for files (e.g., <ai-request><file>src/app.js</file></ai-request>).
   • Copy the request and run ai-bridge apply --paste.
   • The tool will automatically gather those files and bundle them into ai-bridge/artifacts/ai-requested-context.txt.
   • Upload or paste that context back into the AI chat.
6. The AI generates the final code changes. Copy them and run ai-bridge apply --paste.

📖 Command Reference

🛠️ Ecosystem Detection

When you run ai-bridge pack, it groups files intelligently based on your ecosystem to keep contexts organized:

📋 Clipboard Support

ai-bridge apply --paste uses native OS commands — no external dependencies required.

🤝 Contributing

See CONTRIBUTING.md for build instructions and how to submit a PR.

📄 License

This project is licensed under the MIT License.