Show HN: DAC – open-source dashboard as code tool for agents and humans | AI Paper Digest

TL;DR Highlight

DAC builds open-source dashboards defined as code—using YAML and TSX—and allows AI agents to automatically generate and modify them.

Who Should Read

Data engineers and backend developers seeking to automate dashboard creation with AI agents or integrate dashboards into Git-based review workflows.

Core Mechanics

DAC is an open-source tool for defining dashboards as YAML or TSX (TypeScript JSX) files, enabling version control, review, and automation.
An embedded AI agent (based on Codex) modifies dashboards in real-time via chat, and outputs YAML/TSX files for human review via pull requests.
DAC includes a built-in Semantic Layer: defining metrics and dimensions once in the `semantic/` directory allows widgets to reference them, and DAC automatically generates SQL.
DAC supports major databases including Postgres, MySQL, Snowflake, BigQuery, Redshift, and Databricks, executing queries via the Bruin CLI (which must be installed).
Dashboards can be built using TSX, allowing JSX-like component writing with support for dynamic charts, tabs, loops, and conditionals—offering more complex layout options than simple YAML.
Installation is possible with a single-line curl script, offering stable and edge (main branch latest) versions.
DAC is open-source under the AGPL-3.0 license, with a pre-defined file structure for AI agent integration including `.agents/skills`, `AGENTS.md`, and `CLAUDE.md`.

Evidence

"Feedback suggested DAC’s framing as a ‘dashboard for agents’ differentiates it from existing dashboard-as-code tools, as standardizing and making agent-generated results reviewable is a key challenge. Concerns were raised about YAML scalability, with some finding 1000+ line YAML files difficult to manage, while others defended YAML with proper tooling and conventions. The Semantic Layer and validation features were highlighted as key differentiators, with suggestions to prioritize them in documentation. Users requested comparisons to similar open-source tools like Evidence, Lightdash, and Vega-Lite, and shared experiences of Claude working well with Vega-Lite."

How to Apply

"If you want to automate dashboard generation with AI agents but need team review, DAC enables agents to generate YAML/TSX files that can be reviewed and merged via Git pull requests. Teams using Snowflake or BigQuery with duplicated SQL for metrics can define them once in DAC’s Semantic Layer (`semantic/`) to reduce redundancy. If you already use Bruin for data pipelines, DAC can quickly leverage existing Bruin connections. For complex dashboard layouts, switch to TSX to manage them as React components with loops, conditionals, and dynamic tabs."

Code Example

snippet

# YAML example
name: Sales Overview
connection: warehouse
rows:
  - widgets:
      - name: Revenue
        type: metric
        sql: SELECT SUM(amount) AS value FROM sales
        column: value
        prefix: "$"
        col: 4

---

// TSX example
export default (
  <Dashboard name="Simple Dashboard" connection="my_db">
    <Row>
      <Metric
        name="Total Revenue"
        col={4}
        sql="SELECT SUM(amount) AS value FROM sales"
        column="value"
        prefix="$"
        format="number"
      />
    </Row>
  </Dashboard>
)

---

# Install (stable)
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/bruin-data/dac/main/install.sh | bash

# Install (edge, latest main branch)
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/bruin-data/dac/main/install.sh | bash -s -- --channel edge

Terminology

Dashboard-as-CodeA method of defining dashboard configurations as code (YAML, TSX, etc.) instead of through a GUI, enabling version control with Git and review via pull requests.

Semantic LayerAn abstraction layer that defines metrics (revenue, user count, etc.) and dimensions (date, region, etc.) in a central location for reuse across charts and widgets, reducing SQL duplication and ensuring consistency.

TSXA combination of TypeScript and JSX, a file format for writing React components in TypeScript using HTML-like tag syntax to define UI structure.

BruinA data pipeline orchestration CLI tool. DAC delegates query execution to Bruin, requiring Bruin CLI to be installed.

AGPL-3.0An open-source license requiring that any modifications to the software be publicly released if the software is offered as a service (including SaaS).

Vega-LiteA declarative DSL (domain-specific language) for defining data visualization charts in JSON. It is well-suited for use with AI models like Claude due to its JSON specification.

Show HN: DAC – open-source dashboard as code tool for agents and humans