rnassist

AI-powered debugger and performance analyzer for React Native projects.

Run it inside any React Native project to get real-time analysis of your code, dependencies, runtime errors, network calls, and known bugs — all in one terminal report.

How It Works

rnassist scan
      ↓
Reads all .ts .tsx .js .jsx files
      ↓
Checks dependencies against known RN bug database
      ↓
Connects to your running app via Metro WebSocket
Collects: runtime errors, console logs, network calls
      ↓
Sends everything to Gemini AI
      ↓
Prints a specific, actionable report in your terminal

Requirements

• Node.js 18+
• A React Native or Expo project
• Metro bundler running (npx expo start or npx react-native start)
• Gemini API key (GEMINI_API_KEY)

Installation

npm install -g rnassist

Setup

You need a free Gemini API key to use rnassist:

1. Get your API key: https://aistudio.google.com/app/apikey
2. Set it as an environment variable:

export GEMINI_API_KEY="your-api-key-here"

To make it permanent, add it to your shell profile:

# For Zsh (macOS default)
echo 'export GEMINI_API_KEY="your-key"' >> ~/.zshrc
source ~/.zshrc

# For Bash
echo 'export GEMINI_API_KEY="your-key"' >> ~/.bashrc
source ~/.bashrc

Usage

Navigate to your React Native project root, then run:

Scan

rnassist scan

Watches your running app. Trigger some actions in the simulator or device, then press Ctrl+C to analyze. You will get a full report covering:

• Runtime crashes and errors
• Performance bottlenecks (JS thread, re-renders, memory leaks)
• Bad patterns and anti-patterns
• Known bugs matched to your exact dependency versions
• Network calls made during the session

Ask (focused question)

rnassist ask "Why is startup slow on Android?"

Same runtime capture flow as scan, but the AI response is focused on your exact question.

Update Bug Database

rnassist update-bugs

Fetches the latest React Native changelog from GitHub and updates the local bug database. Run this periodically to stay up to date with known fixes.

Tests

npm test

Example Output

===========================================================================================
[!] CRITICAL CRASH
===========================================================================================
FILE: /app/(tabs)/biometric.tsx
LINE: 22

  21 |  const data = undefined;
  22 |  console.log(data.name);  <--- CRASH HERE

FIX: Use optional chaining: console.log(data?.name)

===========================================================================================
[!] PERFORMANCE — JS THREAD BOTTLENECK
===========================================================================================
FILE: /Hooks/useProduct.tsx

  fetchProduct is recreated on every render.
  Wrap in useCallback to stabilize the reference.

What It Analyzes

• All .ts, .tsx, .js, .jsx files in your project (skips node_modules, android, ios, build)
• package.json dependencies matched against a database of known RN bugs
• Live runtime data from your running app via Chrome DevTools Protocol
• React Native core bug fixes from the official changelog

License

ISC