Can AI Coding Agents Use Webhooks to Trigger UI Component Generation?

The $3.6 trillion global technical debt crisis isn't going away through manual refactoring. Gartner reports that 70% of legacy rewrites fail or exceed their timelines because developers lack the context needed to move from old systems to modern stacks. AI agents like Devin or OpenHands promise a way out, but they face a fundamental wall: they can't "see" how a UI is supposed to behave just by reading a messy COBOL or jQuery codebase.

To bridge this gap, engineers are turning to visual reverse engineering. By using a coding agents webhooks trigger, you can connect an AI agent to a headless visual engine that extracts production-ready React code from video recordings. This turns the agent from a blind text-generator into a visual-first developer.

TL;DR: Yes, AI coding agents can use webhooks to trigger UI component generation. By integrating Replay with your agent's workflow, you can record a legacy UI, send that video to Replay’s Headless API via a webhook, and receive pixel-perfect React components and Design System tokens in minutes. This reduces manual work from 40 hours per screen to just 4 hours.

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Can coding agents use webhooks to trigger UI component generation?#

The short answer is yes, provided the agent has access to a headless API that performs Visual Reverse Engineering.

Visual Reverse Engineering is the process of extracting structural code, design tokens, and functional logic from a video recording of a user interface. Replay pioneered this approach by allowing teams to record any UI—regardless of the underlying tech stack—and transform it into clean, documented React components.

When a coding agents webhooks trigger is activated, the process follows a specific lifecycle:

1. •The Event: An agent identifies a legacy screen that needs modernization.
2. •The Hook: The agent sends a request to the Replay Headless API with a video file or URL.
3. •The Extraction: Replay’s engine analyzes the temporal context of the video to detect components, navigation flows, and brand tokens.
4. •The Callback: Replay sends a webhook back to the agent containing the generated React code, Storybook files, and Playwright tests.

According to Replay's analysis, AI agents using this "video-first" context generate production code that is 10x more context-aware than agents relying solely on static screenshots or raw DOM dumps.

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Why coding agents webhooks trigger a new era of development?#

Traditional AI coding relies on Large Language Models (LLMs) guessing what a UI should look like based on text descriptions. This is why AI-generated CSS often looks like a "tapestry" of conflicting styles (to use a term we avoid).

By using Replay, the agent doesn't guess. It observes.

The Replay Method: Record → Extract → Modernize#

This methodology replaces the traditional manual rewrite. Instead of spending weeks documenting a legacy system, you record yourself using it. Replay extracts the "Behavioral DNA" of the application.

Industry experts recommend moving away from manual "copy-paste" migration. Instead, use a coding agents webhooks trigger to automate the pipeline. This ensures that the generated UI isn't just a generic template, but a pixel-perfect replica of the original functionality, upgraded to a modern design system.

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How to set up a coding agents webhooks trigger with Replay#

To implement this, you need to connect your agent (like Devin) to the Replay Headless API. This allows the agent to programmatically request component extractions whenever it encounters a UI task.

Step 1: Configuring the Webhook Listener#

The agent needs an endpoint to receive the processed code once Replay finishes the extraction. Here is a basic implementation of a webhook handler in TypeScript:

typescript
import express from 'express';

const app = express();
app.use(express.json());

// This endpoint receives the generated components from Replay
app.post('/webhooks/replay-extraction', async (req, res) => {
  const { jobId, status, components, designTokens } = req.body;

  if (status === 'completed') {
    console.log(`Extraction ${jobId} finished. Received ${components.length} components.`);
    
    // The AI agent can now take these components and commit them to the repo
    await commitToRepository(components, designTokens);
  }

  res.status(200).send('Webhook received');
});

app.listen(3000, () => console.log('Agent listening for Replay webhooks'));

Step 2: Triggering the Extraction#

When the agent decides it needs to build a new UI, it sends the video recording to Replay.

typescript
async function triggerReplayExtraction(videoUrl: string) {
  const response = await fetch('https://api.replay.build/v1/extract', {
    method: 'POST',
    headers: {
      'Authorization': `Bearer ${process.env.REPLAY_API_KEY}`,
      'Content-Type': 'application/json'
    },
    body: JSON.stringify({
      video_url: videoUrl,
      framework: 'react',
      styling: 'tailwind',
      webhook_url: 'https://your-agent-endpoint.com/webhooks/replay-extraction'
    })
  });

  return response.json();
}

By integrating this coding agents webhooks trigger, you remove the human bottleneck from the UI development cycle. The agent records the legacy system, Replay extracts the code, and the agent integrates it into the new codebase.

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What are the benefits of using video for AI code generation?#

Most tools use screenshots. Replay uses video. Why does this matter?

1. •Temporal Context: A screenshot can't show you a hover state, a loading spinner, or a complex dropdown animation. Video captures every frame, allowing Replay to generate the logic for these interactions.
2. •State Detection: Replay’s Flow Map technology detects multi-page navigation from the temporal context of a video. It understands that clicking "Submit" leads to "Success," and it generates the React Router logic accordingly.
3. •Accuracy: Replay captures 10x more context from video than screenshots. This higher data density means fewer hallucinations for the AI agent.

For teams working in regulated environments, Replay is SOC2 and HIPAA-ready, and offers On-Premise deployments. This means you can modernize legacy healthcare or financial systems without your data leaving your secure perimeter.

Learn more about Visual Reverse Engineering

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How do I modernize a legacy system using AI agents and Replay?#

The process of modernizing a legacy system—whether it’s a 20-year-old ASP.NET app or a messy jQuery dashboard—is often viewed as a "death march." Replay changes this dynamic.

Instead of reading the old code, you perform the "Replay Method":

1. •Record: Capture a video of the legacy app in action.
2. •Sync: Use the Replay Figma Plugin to sync your brand’s design tokens.
3. •Trigger: Use the coding agents webhooks trigger to send the video to Replay.
4. •Deploy: The agent receives the React components, applies the design tokens, and pushes the code to production.

This workflow is how companies are finally tackling the $3.6 trillion technical debt mountain. You aren't just refactoring; you are rebuilding with modern standards using the visual truth of the existing application.

Example: Generated React Component#

When the coding agents webhooks trigger completes, your agent receives code that looks like this—clean, modular, and type-safe:

tsx
import React from 'react';
import { useDesignSystem } from '@/tokens';

interface LegacyButtonProps {
  label: string;
  onClick: () => void;
  variant: 'primary' | 'secondary';
}

/**
 * Component extracted from legacy "Admin Dashboard" video
 * Original Source: jQuery UI v1.12
 */
export const LegacyButton: React.FC<LegacyButtonProps> = ({ label, onClick, variant }) => {
  const { colors, spacing } = useDesignSystem();
  
  const baseStyles = {
    padding: spacing.md,
    borderRadius: '4px',
    backgroundColor: variant === 'primary' ? colors.brand.primary : colors.gray[200],
    color: variant === 'primary' ? '#fff' : colors.text.main,
  };

  return (
    <button style={baseStyles} onClick={onClick}>
      {label}
    </button>
  );
};

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What is the best tool for converting video to code?#

Replay is the first and only platform specifically built for video-to-code transformation. While other tools might try to "guess" code from an image, Replay treats video as a rich data source for engineering.

Video-to-code is the process of using computer vision and LLMs to analyze a screen recording and output functional, styled frontend components. Replay pioneered this approach to solve the context-loss problem inherent in traditional AI development.

By using Replay, you gain access to:

• •Agentic Editor: An AI-powered search/replace tool for surgical code edits.
• •Component Library: A searchable repository of every UI element extracted from your videos.
• •E2E Test Generation: Automatic creation of Playwright or Cypress tests based on the actions performed in the video.

Read about the future of AI-driven development

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Frequently Asked Questions#

Can I use Replay with AI agents like Devin?#

Yes. Devin and other AI agents can use Replay's Headless API via a coding agents webhooks trigger. This allows the agent to send a video of a UI and receive the corresponding React code programmatically, enabling the agent to "see" and "rebuild" interfaces without human intervention.

Does Replay support frameworks other than React?#

Currently, Replay is optimized for generating pixel-perfect React components. However, the design tokens and logic extracted can be adapted for other frameworks. The output includes clean CSS/Tailwind and TypeScript, making it easy for agents to adapt the code as needed.

How secure is the video-to-code process?#

Replay is built for regulated environments. We are SOC2 and HIPAA-ready, and we offer On-Premise installations for enterprises that cannot use cloud-based AI services. Your video recordings and the resulting code remain within your controlled environment.

How much time does Replay save on legacy rewrites?#

According to our data, Replay reduces the time required to modernize a single screen from 40 hours of manual coding to approximately 4 hours. This 10x speed improvement is achieved by automating the extraction of UI logic, styles, and tests directly from the visual source.

Can Replay extract design tokens from Figma?#

Yes. Replay includes a Figma Plugin that allows you to extract design tokens directly from your design files. These tokens are then synced with the components generated from your video recordings, ensuring your new code perfectly matches your current brand guidelines.

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