Building an AI-powered form builder

I wanted to share some cool technical details about a form builder project I've been working on. What makes it special? It combines the power of AI with a modern React stack to create a super intuitive form building experience.

Tech Stack

The project is built with:

• Next.js
• Zustand for state management
• Tailwind CSS for styling
• OpenAI's GPT-4 for AI form generation
• JSON Schema for form structure

AI Magic

The coolest part is how I integrate AI into the form building process. Using GPT-4, users can describe their form in plain English, and the system generates a complete form structure. Here's how it works:

• The AI form generator takes a natural language prompt and converts it into a structured JSON Schema
• It not only generates the basic form fields but also handles:
  • Field validation rules
  • UI layout and ordering
  • Custom button text
  • Theme customization
  • Field descriptions and placeholders

Architecture Deep Dive

The form builder is structured around three main components:

Schema Management

• Uses JSON Schema for form structure definition
• Maintains separate UI schema for presentation logic
• Handles dynamic field ordering and validation rules

Form Renderer

• Real-time preview of the form being built
• Custom field templates for different input types
• Responsive layout with theme customization

AI Integration

• Smart prompt processing with GPT-4
• Generates both schema and UI configuration
• Handles complex form patterns and validations

Smart Features

The system includes some pretty neat features:

• Theme Customization: Handles everything from colors to button styles
• Live Preview: Real-time form rendering as you build
• Export Options: Can export to StackBlitz for immediate use
• Drag-and-Drop: Intuitive field reordering
• Smart Defaults: AI generates sensible defaults based on field types

The Schema Magic

One of the coolest technical aspects is how I handle form schemas. Instead of just generating basic HTML forms, I create a complete JSON Schema that includes:

{
  "schema": {
    "type": "object",
    "properties": {
      // Dynamic form fields
    },
    "required": []
  },
  "uiSchema": {
    "ui:order": []
    // Field-specific UI configurations
  },
  "theme": {
    // Custom styling options
  }
}

Export and Share

We can instantly deploy your form to StackBlitz or export it as a standalone component. The exported forms are self-contained and don't require the form builder dependencies.