You can ask an AI tool such as ChatGPT or Claude to help build a workflow in Aptly: create a board, add fields and stages, and create automations. The AI needs an approved connection that can call Aptly’s Core API to make those changes.
This guide covers prompts sent to an external AI tool. For the separate AI feature inside Aptly’s automation editor, see Creating Automations with AI Prompt in Aptly.
Before You Begin
A prompt alone does not connect your account. Ordinary chat can help plan a workflow, but it cannot change Aptly without an API-capable tool or integration. Aptly’s setup guide documents local API access for coding assistants such as Claude Code and Codex. If you use ChatGPT or another Claude interface, confirm that your setup can make authenticated Core API requests. Do not assume every Aptly connector exposes every API operation.
Ask your account administrator or integration owner to help with setup if needed:
- For an existing board, enable API access under Card Sources → API.
- Create or configure a scoped API key in Setup → Developer. Limit it to the boards and operations needed. Include Read access so the assistant can inspect and verify its work.
- Add only the write permissions needed below. Create Boards, Edit Boards, and Automations are separate access settings; enabling one does not enable the others.
- Store the key securely. For the local coding-assistant setup, use a local
.envfile excluded from Git, as the setup guide describes. Do not paste the key into a general chat, document, screenshot, or prompt. Tell the assistant never to print, log, or commit it. API requests should use thex-tokenheader, not a URL containing the key. See Authentication.
What you want to do | Required write access |
Create a board | Insert permission and Create Boards access |
Add or change fields and stages on an existing board | Update permission and Edit Boards access |
Create automations | Update permission and Automations access |
The key that creates a board has special access to that board, including field changes with Update permission without Edit Boards. This does not bypass automation access restrictions. If the key is limited to specific boards, add the new board to its allowed boards before creating its automations. If access is blocked, pause and ask your administrator for the required scoped access rather than broadening the key automatically. Board creation permissions
What the API Can Build
- Boards: create a ticket or deal board with custom fields and an ordered stage pipeline. Stage names must be unique, and the first stage must be open. Create a board
- Fields: add supported fields such as text, dates, numbers, and dropdowns; dropdowns need their option lists. Existing fields can have supported settings updated, but their field type and ID cannot be changed. Add a field · Update a field
- Stages: add, reorder, and recolor stages. The API requires the complete stage list for an update and does not allow removing or renaming existing stages or changing their open, closed, or won status. Stage updates
- Automations: create rules triggered by a stage, custom conditions, or a reply. Supported actions include tasks, email, SMS, assignment, field and stage updates, due dates, notifications, archiving, and webhooks. Not every editor feature is supported; for example, task-completion and field-group triggers, PDF, e-signature, and related-card actions are unavailable through this endpoint. Create an automation
Give the AI a Plan Before It Makes Changes
- Share the official documentation index, not your secret key. Ask the assistant to read the current endpoint instructions before using them.
- Ask it to inspect the target board, its schema, stages, and existing automations. Have it confirm the correct board if names are similar.
- Describe the result in plain language: board, trigger, matching cards, actions, timing, and what must not change. Ask for a plan and wait to approve it before any write requests.
- For a new workflow, have it create the approved board, fields, and stages first. Then read them back and use the returned board and field IDs and exact stage names for the automation. Do not let it guess IDs or silently substitute missing items.
Prompt for an Existing Board
Replace the board and stage names with your own:
Read https://docs.getaptly.com/llms.txt and the relevant Core API documentation. Inspect my “Leasing” board, its schema, stages, and existing automations. Confirm the exact board and check for an equivalent rule before creating anything. Propose an automation titled “Create Task: Review new lead”: when a card enters the existing “New Lead” stage, create one task named “Review new lead” on that card, assigned to the card assignee, with Immediately timing. Do not send messages, create cards, change fields or stages, or activate or test the automation. Show me the plan and ask for approval before making changes. After approval, create the automation and read it back to confirm it is paused.
Prompt for a New Board and Workflow
Read https://docs.getaptly.com/llms.txt and the relevant Core API documentation. Plan a new deal board named “AI Leasing Follow-up.” First check whether it already exists; if it does, ask me before reusing or changing it. If your board visibility is limited, tell me before creating a possible duplicate. Use these stages in order: New Lead, Contacted, Closed. Keep New Lead and Contacted open; mark Closed as closed, not won. Add a dropdown named “Lead Source” with Website, Referral, and Other, and a date field named “Desired Move-in.” Add an automation titled “Create Task: Review new lead” that creates one “Review new lead” task for the card assignee immediately when a card enters New Lead. Show me the plan and required access first. Make no changes until I approve. After approval, create the board with its fields and stages, read back its IDs and schema, and confirm the key can create automations on that board before proceeding. Create the automation paused and read it back. Do not create cards, send messages, or activate or test the automation. Report what was created and anything incomplete.
For refinements, name the exact difference: for example, “Use Contacted instead of New Lead, but keep the task and timing unchanged.” Ask the assistant to inspect the saved state and propose the supported change, not create another copy automatically. Review or edit saved automations in Aptly; this guide does not assume an API endpoint for updating an existing automation.
Review and Activate in Aptly
The automation-creation endpoint always creates a paused rule and cannot make it Live. Ask the assistant to confirm the saved rule and its paused state (archived: true). Board and field changes are real changes when made; they do not share the automation’s paused state. Creation behavior
- Open the board in Aptly and verify its fields, dropdown options, and stage order.
- Open Automations, find the created rule, and review its trigger, conditions, every action, timing, and status. Check recipients and templates before using message actions. Keep it in Draft while reviewing.
- Follow Using Test Mode for Automations with a dedicated sample card and test destinations. Tests can create tasks or change data; review each action first.
- When ready, set Status: Live and Save. Check the first live result and the rule’s three-dot menu → Logs.
API-created stage automations do not enroll existing cards. After activation, they apply to cards entering the selected stage afterward. Each API-created stage rule is tied to one selected stage and fires at most once per card for that trigger. Review the trigger choice if the same rule needs to run repeatedly on the same card.
Troubleshooting
- The AI only returns instructions or code: confirm it has a working API-capable connection. A plan is not proof that anything was created.
- Access is denied: check API enablement, key expiry, board scope, read/write permissions, and the separate access toggles. Creating a board does not automatically grant automation access to it.
- A stage, field, template, inbox, or user is rejected: ask the assistant to read the error and inspect the current configuration. Do not accept invented replacements.
- A step fails or times out: ask what already succeeded and read back the current state before retrying. Do not assume earlier steps were rolled back or that repeating a creation request is duplicate-safe.
- The automation has not run: confirm its saved status, trigger, conditions, timing, and whether the relevant event happened after activation. Paused creation is expected.