Replay: Use AI to Build UI for Restaurant Ordering Systems from Video Recordings

TL;DR: Replay lets you build a complete, functional restaurant ordering system UI from a simple video recording using AI-powered behavior-driven reconstruction, saving you weeks of development time.

From Screen Recording to Restaurant App: Building UI with AI#

Building user interfaces is time-consuming. Especially complex systems like restaurant ordering apps, which require handling menus, orders, payments, and more. What if you could skip the tedious manual coding and generate a functional UI directly from a screen recording of someone using an existing app? That's the power of Replay.

Replay leverages AI, specifically Gemini, to analyze video recordings and reconstruct fully functional UIs. Unlike traditional screenshot-to-code tools, Replay understands user behavior – what the user is trying to accomplish – and translates that into working code. This "Behavior-Driven Reconstruction" is a game-changer for rapid prototyping and development.

The Problem: UI Development is a Bottleneck#

Creating even a basic restaurant ordering app involves:

• •Designing the UI (menus, cart, checkout)
• •Implementing the backend logic (handling orders, payments)
• •Connecting the UI to the backend
• •Testing and iterating

This process can take weeks, even with experienced developers. Screenshot-to-code tools offer a partial solution, but they often produce brittle code that doesn't accurately reflect the intended user experience. They treat the UI as a static image, missing the dynamic interactions and user flows.

The Solution: Replay's Behavior-Driven Reconstruction#

Replay addresses this problem by analyzing video of user interactions. This allows Replay to:

• •Understand the user's intent (e.g., adding an item to the cart, applying a discount)
• •Reconstruct the UI with the correct behavior
• •Generate clean, maintainable code

Here's a comparison:

Building a Restaurant Ordering UI with Replay: A Step-by-Step Guide#

Let's walk through building a basic restaurant ordering UI using Replay. We'll assume you have a video recording of someone navigating a similar app, showcasing the desired functionality.

Step 1: Prepare Your Video Recording#

The quality of your video recording directly impacts the accuracy of the generated code.

💡 Pro Tip: Ensure your video is clear, well-lit, and shows the entire screen. Focus on showcasing the key user flows you want to recreate. Remove any unnecessary pauses or distractions.

Step 2: Upload Your Video to Replay#

Sign up for a Replay account and upload your video. Replay will automatically begin analyzing the video to identify UI elements and user interactions.

Step 3: Configure Replay's Settings#

Replay offers several configuration options to customize the generated code.

• •Framework: Choose your preferred framework (e.g., React, Vue, Svelte).
• •Styling: Select a styling library (e.g., Tailwind CSS, Material UI).
• •Data Source: Integrate with a data source like Supabase to handle dynamic content.

Step 4: Generate the Code#

Once the analysis is complete and the settings are configured, click the "Generate Code" button. Replay will generate the UI code based on the video and your settings.

Step 5: Review and Refine the Code#

The generated code is a great starting point, but you'll likely need to review and refine it. Replay provides tools for:

• •Editing the generated code directly
• •Adjusting UI element properties
• •Adding custom logic

Step 6: Integrate with Supabase (Optional)#

For a dynamic restaurant ordering app, you'll need a database to store menu items, orders, and user data. Replay seamlessly integrates with Supabase.

Here's an example of fetching menu items from Supabase using the generated code:

typescript
// Assuming you have a Supabase client initialized
import { supabase } from './supabaseClient';

const fetchMenuItems = async () => {
  const { data, error } = await supabase
    .from('menu_items')
    .select('*');

  if (error) {
    console.error('Error fetching menu items:', error);
    return [];
  }

  return data;
};

// Example usage within a React component
import React, { useState, useEffect } from 'react';

const Menu = () => {
  const [menuItems, setMenuItems] = useState([]);

  useEffect(() => {
    fetchMenuItems().then(items => setMenuItems(items));
  }, []);

  return (
    <ul>
      {menuItems.map(item => (
        <li key={item.id}>{item.name} - ${item.price}</li>
      ))}
    </ul>
  );
};

export default Menu;

This code snippet demonstrates how to fetch data from a Supabase table named

and display it in a React component. Replay can automatically generate similar code snippets based on the observed data interactions in the video recording.

Step 7: Inject Styles (Optional)#

Replay allows you to inject custom styles into the generated UI. You can use CSS, Tailwind CSS, or any other styling library.

For example, to apply a custom background color to the menu:

css
/* styles.css */
.menu {
  background-color: #f0f0f0;
  padding: 20px;
  border-radius: 5px;
}

You can then import this CSS file into your React component:

typescript
import './styles.css';

const Menu = () => {
  // ... (rest of the component)

  return (
    <ul className="menu"> {/* Apply the CSS class */}
      {menuItems.map(item => (
        <li key={item.id}>{item.name} - ${item.price}</li>
      ))}
    </ul>
  );
};

Replay can also generate these styles automatically based on the visual appearance of the UI in the video recording.

Step 8: Product Flow Maps#

Replay generates a product flow map that visually represents the user's journey through the application. This helps you understand the overall structure of the UI and identify potential areas for improvement. This map is automatically generated based on the video recording, saving you time and effort.

Benefits of Using Replay#

• •Rapid Prototyping: Quickly create functional prototypes from existing app recordings.
• •Reduced Development Time: Automate UI development and focus on backend logic.
• •Improved Code Quality: Replay generates clean, maintainable code.
• •Better User Experience: Reconstruct UIs based on real user behavior.
• •Seamless Integration: Integrate with Supabase and other popular tools.
• •Multi-Page Generation: Handle complex, multi-page applications with ease.

⚠️ Warning: While Replay significantly accelerates UI development, it's not a magic bullet. You'll still need to review and refine the generated code to ensure it meets your specific requirements.

📝 Note: Replay excels at recreating existing UI patterns. For completely novel designs, you might still need to start with traditional design tools.

Replay vs. Traditional UI Development#

Frequently Asked Questions#

Is Replay free to use?#

Replay offers a free tier with limited features. Paid plans are available for more advanced functionality and higher usage limits.

How is Replay different from v0.dev?#

v0.dev generates UI components based on text prompts. Replay, on the other hand, analyzes video recordings to understand user behavior and reconstruct entire applications. This behavior-driven approach leads to more accurate and functional code.

What frameworks does Replay support?#

Replay currently supports React, Vue, and Svelte. More frameworks will be added in the future.

Can I use Replay to build mobile apps?#

Replay can generate code that is compatible with mobile app development frameworks like React Native. However, you'll need to adapt the generated code to the specific requirements of the mobile platform.

How accurate is the generated code?#

The accuracy of the generated code depends on the quality of the video recording and the complexity of the UI. In most cases, Replay generates a functional UI that requires minimal refinement.

---

Ready to try behavior-driven code generation? Get started with Replay - transform any video into working code in seconds.