Maintaining design-code parity with AI
When a designer updates a color in Figma, that change sits in limbo— waiting for someone to notice, copy values, and hope nothing breaks. This demo shows a different path.
The Problem
Design systems promise consistency. Reality delivers drift. Tokens get updated in Figma but not in code. Developers hardcode values "just to ship." Nobody knows if a change will break accessibility until it's in production.
The tools exist to sync tokens automatically—Tokens Studio, Style Dictionary, GitHub Actions. But they only solve half the problem. They sync values. They don't think about consequences.
Syncing tokens without analyzing impact is automation without intelligence.
The Solution
An AI-orchestrated pipeline that doesn't just sync—it analyzes. Built on the industry-standard stack (Figma MCP, Style Dictionary, W3C design tokens), but with two capabilities that change everything:
Drift Detection
Before syncing new values, the pipeline scans your codebase for hardcoded
values that should already be tokens. It finds the #a0a0a0 that
should be var(--color-text-secondary). It calculates a "parity
score" so you know exactly how aligned your code is with your design system.
Found 4 hardcoded values that should be tokens:
src/components/Nav.astro:12
│ color: #a0a0a0
└→ Use: var(--color-text-secondary)
src/pages/index.astro:45
│ padding-block: 88px
└→ Use: var(--space-section-md)
Parity score: 87%Impact Analysis
Changing a color token isn't just about the new value. It's about every place that color appears. The pipeline traces all usages and runs WCAG contrast checks against their backgrounds. You see accessibility failures before the PR is created, not after launch.
TOKEN: --color-accent
CHANGE: #e5e5e5 → #ff6b35
[!] WCAG FAILURES (2)
src/components/Button.astro:15
│ Text on accent background
│ Contrast: 2.8:1 (needs 4.5:1)
└→ Suggestion: darken accent or lighten text
[ok] SAFE USAGES (3)
• CursorGlow.astro — decorative glow
• index.astro — border accentWhat Makes This Different
Most token pipelines are dumb pipes. Values go in, values come out. This pipeline understands context. It knows the difference between a color used for text (where contrast matters) and a color used for a decorative glow (where it doesn't).
The simulated PR doesn't just show what changed. It shows what those changes mean. Reviewers see WCAG compliance status, affected components, and the parity score—all the context needed to make an informed decision.
Try the Demo
This isn't a concept. It's running on this site. The tokens you're looking at right now can be synced from Figma through this pipeline. The drift detection scans this actual codebase. The impact analysis checks these actual components.
Interactive Demo
Watch Claude read tokens from Figma, detect drift in this codebase, analyze accessibility impact, and generate a PR—all orchestrated through a single command.
Run the Demo →Technical Stack
Built on proven technology, extended with intelligent analysis:
- Figma MCP — Read tokens via Model Context Protocol
- Style Dictionary — Transform to W3C DTCG format
- Tailwind CSS 4 — Output as @theme CSS custom properties
- Custom drift detection — AST scanning for hardcoded values
- WCAG contrast engine — Automated accessibility checking
- Claude Code skill — Orchestration via /design-token-demo