🎨 Prompt Pro Challenge: Share your best (or funniest) Assist prompts

Gabriella here again from the product team :wave: Assist is live — and now it’s your turn to play.

We’re kicking off the Prompt Pro Challenge: a community thread for sharing your best (or most unexpected) Assist prompts. Quick wins, creative hacks, or hilarious fails… it all counts.

:backhand_index_pointing_right: How to participate:

  • Comment with the prompt you used
  • Share what Assist gave you back (screenshot encouraged!)
  • Bonus: Did it save you time or unblock you?

:light_bulb: Need inspiration? Try things like:

  • :art: Styling apps → e.g. “Make this look like Netflix”
  • :bell: Editing → e.g. “Add a column”

:sports_medal: Every post earns you the Prompt Pro badge
:speech_balloon: Standout prompts may also get featured in our new Builder Digest newsletter

:high_voltage: Note: Assist is still evolving, so some results will be great, some will flop. Both are useful — and fun to share.

Can’t wait to see what you all come up with! :rocket:

— Gabriella


Full challenge details:

5 Likes

Happy to kick this off!

I wanted a tool to keep track of all the fantastic demos our EPD team presents every week.

This is a tool that probably would have taken 2-3 hours to build myself with all of the various and polish and things I got automatically thanks to the AI assistance, but all in all, it took me 21 minutes and 57 seconds (70% generated app and probably 30% manual tweaks).

It allows me to paste in a transcript from our team Zoom call and uses Claude to parse out each specific demo.

Here's the prompt I used:

I want to build an EPD demo tracker. This will allow me to keep track of
all the various demos that EPD has put on.

Use the epd_demos table in Retool DB to source your data.

UI
  - A table for all of our data, with the ability to search by presenter
    name or by fuzzy search in title, description or notes. When
    one of these inputs is populated, it should filter down the table.

  - An add modal with a large text area to paste a transcript of a demo
    call as well as an input for the recording link and for the
    date of the recording

  - An edit modal that allows the user to edit anything about
    a particular demo. This modal is triggered by a row action
    on a particular row of the table.

Screenshots attached for how it turned out! It's been working great!

I've found a few things here and there that I didn't capture in the initial prompt that I've needed to modify, but honestly I probably wouldn't have built this at all if I had to build it completely on my own. I find I'm much more likely to start building apps if I know I don't have to start from a completely blank slate.

4 Likes

+1 to Keanan's demo tracker — such a cool use case :raised_hands:

I challenge you to give Keanan’s prompt a try and let us know how it goes. Did it work the same way for you? Did you have to tweak it? Always interesting to see how Assist handles the same request in different hands.

Your turn! :man_running: @joel.a.macpherson @calvin @Yony_Feng @Yossi_Mosbacher @kbb @explore @gary-w-blw @mmayes @mrgdo @cdavy @kvilberg @jnak @Ryan_Nicholas @Mario_Vitiello @shauncc @ania @daniel.berrow @michael.chalmandrier.perna @michaelshimeles @soni.poonam.adlakha @XYN @leila.morales @Grey @simon.persson @Richard.B @alan.whalen @sergserg @alex_molin @thomas.olausson @kimweller @agentic @FlexMikeA @Infinitybht @Owen_Tran @chris_upchieve @skycop @riley @Justin_Posey @patrick-shoreline @eeeeeeee8 @logan1 @ismail.marashi @johnsaunders @jorgepom @ltossaint @jstromain @alexsroussi @A_jay @RetoolPV @pmadden @katyfeng @Leonardo_Kavalco @Alex_Wada @Mohsan_Elahi @eyossifora @brynette @julienfora @jamesg31 @manahil.ashfaq @Samuel_Andreo @teamrappid @stefancvrkotic @JoeyKarczewski @allen

:rotating_light: Brand new badge alert! :rotating_light:
We just dropped the Prompt Pro badge... and you’ll be the very first to earn it! All you have to do is share a prompt here (whether it’s a quick one-liner, a win, or even a weird result).

4 Likes

I just started exploring with Assist. I asked "Hi Assist. I need to build [redacted....but extremely vague ask] ...information, most of which is from our database. Do I need to have an existing query for the table that we want to build or do you help me create that query here? It did answer my question, then it proceeded unprompted to build an entire app on its own making many assumptions. So...A for effort - though seeking more clarity on goals or awaiting more specific asks / instructions might be helpful. [Update] I am now hand-holding it through more detailed asks and so far so good.

1 Like

I wanted to share something I have been adding to my prompts that has been quite helpful. Often times I miss providing details that are important for the agent to really be helpful. Asking the model to ask questions is something I started doing a long time back when Cursor was first released and I find it really reduces the back and forth and often makes the models first attempt much stronger.

The following is just an example you can add. For particularly complicated changes I might also mention something about "interviewing" or "interrogating" me to learn requirements, but I find this results in a bit of a verbose output for regular use.

Ask for clarification when there is ambiguity. DO NOT make assumptions. Before starting work or making changes ask questions to ensure you understand the requirements and intended output.

@kimweller I think you may find this helpful as you mentioned needing to hand hold the model. Adding something like this lets the llm hand hold you, while still getting good results!

3 Likes

Tried to see how good can Assist handle Japanese prompt and can say that it did not disappoint :ok_hand: Can now enjoy funny cat photos with one click of a button!

@gery-cat-neko-apigery-cat-neko-api のAPIを使用して、ボタンが押して違う猫ちゃんの画像が出せる画面を作ってください。

2 Likes

Happy to join the Prompt Pro Challenge!

I’ve been experimenting with Assist to build a tool that helps founders understand their audience without getting stuck on marketing details. I wanted something clean, fast, and easy to use, nothing complicated.

Instead of spending hours planning the layout and wiring everything together, Assist handled most of the setup for me. I only had to refine a few parts afterward, and the full build was finished in under 25 minutes.

The app lets me create audience profiles, save them, and generate focused insights such as audience needs, motivations, and messaging ideas. Everything works inside a simple single-page CRUD layout with a slide-in panel for creating or editing profiles.

Sharing the prompt I used and the screenshots of the final result below.

Design a single-page SaaS interface called Audience Engine with a premium editorial style like Stripe + Notion + The New York Times. The interface should feel intelligent, minimal, and trustworthy, using Space Grotesk for titles, Inter for body text, pure white, warm gray, near-black, and muted blue/deep charcoal. Include a top navigation with the logo on the left and + New Audience Profile on the right. The page has three sections: (1) Create/Update Form card with large side padding, thin border, product description textarea, industry dropdown, goals tags, and Generate Insights button; (2) Audience Insights card with typographic hierarchy, thin dividers, audience segments, pain points, hangout locations, keywords tags, and Regenerate Insights button; (3) Saved Audience Profiles card with full-width table, thin dividers, hover shading, and action icons (view, edit, delete). Maintain wide margins, editorial vertical rhythm, minimal spacing, elegance, and hierarchy, avoid shadows, gradients, bright colors, and keep everything on one page.

2 Likes

Hi, everyone

I created a CRUD app to turn raw ideas into ready-to-publish content in one screen with a bit of AI help. Here was my first prompt:

You are a senior content strategist helping creators turn rough ideas into finished content inside one dashboard. The user will send an action (clarify, outline, draft, or repurpose) plus the content data (title, audience, problem_pain, core_insight, outline, draft_main, primary_channel). You must follow the requested action exactly and return valid JSON only with the required keys: if action is clarify, return improved title, a short and clear problem_pain, and one core_insight; if action is outline, return a markdown bullet outline tailored to the primary channel (short bullets for X or LinkedIn, longer structured outline for Blog or YouTube); if action is draft, turn the outline into a complete draft suitable for the channel, written in a human, clear tone with short paragraphs; if action is repurpose, create alt_x (max 240 characters), alt_linkedin (3 to 7 short paragraphs), and alt_ig_caption (1 to 3 short paragraphs plus 4 to 5 relevant hashtags). Never include explanation text, only return JSON with the correct fields.
Ask for clarification when there is ambiguity. DO NOT make assumptions. Before starting work or making changes ask questions to ensure you understand the requirements and intended output.

Check it out here:
https://aiziza.retool.com/apps/5d9ba5c6-d519-11f0-9d95-e330f2181f26/Content%20Strategy%20Dashboard/page1

2 Likes

Welcome to the community, @Emmanuel_Steve! If you want others to see the app you've built, you'll need to enable public access via the "Share" menu. :+1:

2 Likes

Hi. we have a small shop and I keep records of all the items we sell in a big book. It is hard to find things and know when we are running out of stock.
Please build a tool for me. The tool should let me:

  • Add new items (name, how many in stock, who supplies them, and price)
  • Update items when I sell or buy more
  • Remove items we no longer sell
  • Show me a list of all items with how many I have

Also, make the tool smart:

  • For each item, tell me when the stock will finish if I keep selling the same amount every day
  • Tell me how many items I should reorder so I don’t run out soon
  • Suggest which supplier is cheapest or best
  • Show me a warning for items that are almost finished

Make the design simple (one page).


with ai recommendation and summary

2 Likes

Hi All,

Thought I would contribute one that was super helpful for me.

We are building an app for a real estate client that has a bunch of dropdowns to select with preconfigured options, rather than configuring the options for each dropdown, and having a static list that was cumbersome for the user to update, I wanted to create 1 table with the dropdown column and then the subsequent options the user could use. I also wanted to create a front end piece for the admin of the app to be able to update the dropdown menus whenever they wanted. I knew how to create the table and front end side, but I didn’t know how to configure each select without having to create a query each time, so I used this prompt and it worked great with the results below! Now I can just copy and paste that code into my different Select configurations and not have to manually configure a ton of static options! Hope this is helpful, because it certainly helped me!

Prompt:

Configuration:

Select Dropdown After Configuration:

Dropdown Update Interface for Admin:

2 Likes

Fun and goood prompts

I wanted to create two prompts that were not only functional but also fun. I aimed for prompts that make Assist smile before it gets to work and produces high-quality output. The idea came from a small moment earlier today. I saw a barista dancing behind the counter while making coffee, as if the fate of the galaxy depended on his foam art. That energy inspired the structure.

I thought: What if prompts could start off funny but finish with great organization and professionalism? That’s how the first prompt was born: a dashboard created with the desperation of an employee trying to win a company-paid trip to Tokyo.

Assist, build this dashboard with the same determination as an office worker who just
found out that the CEO is reviewing the quarterly results personally — and whoever makes
the cleanest, sharpest dashboard gets an all-expenses-paid vacation to Tokyo.

He designs it so flawlessly that the CEO pauses, removes his glasses, and whispers:
“This… this is promotion material.”

Bring that level of excellence here.

Create a professional internal dashboard for company employees:
- Include KPI cards for revenue, task completion rate, active projects, and deadlines.
- Add interactive charts (line, bar, and pie) that update when filters are changed.
- Include filters for date range, department, project owner, and priority.
- Add a table of ongoing tasks with sorting, search, and row-click expansion.
- Make the layout clean, readable, and corporate-grade: balanced spacing, strong visual hierarchy.
- Ensure performance is smooth, logical, and organized for a real internal tool.

Funny intro aside, the objective is to produce a high-quality, reliable dashboard
for daily operational use across the company.

Result:

Second one is betTer)

The second prompt came from imagining a librarian who is such an overachiever that the National Archiving Committee becomes emotional. That blend of seriousness and silliness created the perfect tone for a well-structured data-table prompt.

Assist, craft this table with the same precision as a librarian who has spent 10 hours
color-coding every book and is now being secretly evaluated by the National Archiving
Committee. She organizes things so perfectly that they immediately hire her to
modernize the entire country’s library system.

Match her level of structure and discipline.

I need a fully defined, production-ready data table with exact behavior:
1. TABLE STRUCTURE
   - Table name: `employee_performance_table`
   - Columns:
       • `employee_id` (number, non-editable)
       • `full_name` (string)
       • `department` (string, with dropdown filter)
       • `tasks_completed` (number)
       • `performance_score` (number, auto-calculated)
       • `last_review_date` (date)
       • `status` (enum: “Active”, “On Leave”, “Contract Ended”)

2. COLUMN BEHAVIOR
   - `performance_score` should automatically recalculate when `tasks_completed` is updated.
   - `department` should provide a dropdown of existing department values.
   - `status` should display with color tags (green/yellow/red).
   - `last_review_date` auto-formats as YYYY-MM-DD.

3. ROW BEHAVIOR
   - Clicking a row opens a side panel with full employee details.
   - Double-clicking allows inline editing (except for `employee_id`).
   - When a row is updated, the performance score recalculates instantly.
   - When status is “On Leave”, highlight the entire row in soft yellow.

4. TABLE FEATURES
   - Global search across all columns.
   - Sorting by any column.
   - Filters for department, status, and date range.
   - Pagination with adjustable page size.

The intro is humorous, but the requirement is serious:
**build a fully functional, clearly defined, structured table with predictable behavior,
perfect for real internal operations.**

Result:

So, AI likes cool and fun references)

4 Likes

I love this so much, I am going to start using this, thanks for the tip! @jamesg31 :raised_hands:t3:

Hello Community! Hope everyone’s doing great.

I wanted to share the prompt I used and the response I got from Assist. It was incredibly helpful and ended up generating the foundation of the CRUD system for my Contra Hackathon project (link below).

I especially loved how Assist moved smoothly between SQL queries and JavaScript, and the tips from Retool’s YouTube playlists (https://www.youtube.com/@Retool/playlists) were super helpful in shaping the final workflow.

Prompt (condensed):

I had two tables in RetoolDB (Incident_Monitor and User_Feedback) with complete schemas. I asked Assist to generate full CRUD functionality inside an existing app, including:

  • SELECT queries for each table

  • INSERT / UPDATE / DELETE queries

  • Refresh logic

  • Wiring instructions for the UI in tabbedContainer1

Assist returned everything needed: SQL queries, JS wiring steps, and a clear breakdown of how to connect each action to the UI.

Final App: ( FlowBase is a focus-driven productivity environment designed to help users stay in a calm, uninte... )

Thanks!

1 Like

When you want Retool Assist (or any builder AI) to “leave no stone unturned”, your prompt must do four things clearly:

:white_check_mark: 1. Assign a Strong Role
Instead of saying “help me build…”, you say:
“You are an expert full-stack Retool engineer…”
Why it matters:
It forces the AI to think in Retool-native concepts (queries, workflows, drawers, tables, AI actions).
It avoids vague UI or backend assumptions.

:white_check_mark: 2. Separate Task from Context
Bad prompt:
“Build a client onboarding app for agencies.”
Good prompt:
Task = what to build
Context = why it exists
This helps the AI:
Make better architectural decisions
Choose the right components and workflows

:white_check_mark: 3. Over-specify Structure (Databases, UI, Workflows)
Retool Assist performs best when you:
Explicitly list tables
Explicitly list fields
Explicitly list workflows
Why:
Retool is schema-driven
The AI maps your words → actual Retool objects
Think of it as “designing the database in English.”

:white_check_mark: 4. Tell the AI Where to Use AI :robot:
Instead of:
“Generate a summary”
You specified:
What data to read
What sections to output
Where to save the result
This avoids:
Generic summaries
Unusable blobs of text
:white_check_mark: 5. Finish with “Polish & Guardrails”
This is where quality jumps:
Validation
Loading states
Notifications
Clean UI
This signals: “This is a production SaaS, not a demo.”
:two: Final Optimized Prompt (Retool Assist–Ready)
You can paste this entire block directly into Retool Assist (Beta).

:white_check_mark: Detailed Prompt (Improved + Fully Structured)
Role:
You are an expert full-stack Retool engineer experienced in building internal tools, workflows, and automations for agencies and SaaS businesses.
Task:
Build a complete Client Onboarding & Project Summary Automation Tool inside Retool.
Context:
Agencies and freelancers waste hours collecting client details across emails, WhatsApp, Google Drive, and calls. Important information gets lost, onboarding is slow, and teams start projects without clarity. This tool centralizes intake, file uploads, and AI-powered summaries into one clean workflow.

  1. Database Structure
    Create two tables:
    clients
    id (uuid, primary key)
    business_name (text)
    contact_name (text)
    email (text)
    phone (text)
    business_description (long text)
    services_needed (text)
    goals (long text)
    pain_points (long text)
    ai_summary (long text)
    created_at (timestamp, default now)
    client_files
    id (uuid)
    client_id (uuid, foreign key → clients.id)
    file_name (text)
    file_url (text)
    created_at (timestamp, default now)

  2. Interface Requirements
    Client Intake Modal
    Business name
    Contact name
    Email
    Phone
    Business description
    Services needed
    Goals & objectives
    Pain points & challenges
    File upload (multiple files allowed)
    Include instruction text explaining what clients should upload.
    Clients Table
    Display:
    Business name
    Contact name
    Email
    Services needed
    Created date
    Add actions:
    View full details
    Generate / regenerate AI summary
    Client Details Drawer
    Show:
    All client fields
    Uploaded files (clickable)
    AI-generated summary
    Button to regenerate summary

  3. AI Summary Generation
    Use Retool AI to generate a structured summary using:
    Client form data
    Uploaded file references
    Output sections:
    Business overview
    Problems identified
    Project goals
    Recommended services
    Technical considerations
    High-level budget & timeline estimate
    Save output to clients.ai_summary.

  4. Workflows
    Create Client
    Insert client record
    Upload files
    Save file metadata
    Trigger AI summary generation
    Select Client
    Fetch client data
    Fetch related files
    Display drawer
    Regenerate Summary
    Re-run AI action
    Update summary field

  5. Search & Filters
    Search by name or email
    Filter by service type

  6. Finishing Requirements
    Clean, modern UI
    Loading states for all queries
    Success and error notifications
    Field validation
    Smooth file uploadsTART HERE TO GET USEFUL FEEDBACK FASTER-->

  7. My goal: To build a smart client onboarding system that eliminates back-and-forth communication, organizes client files automatically, and instantly generates AI-powered project briefs so teams can start projects faster and with clarity.

  8. Issue: Agencies and freelancers currently collect client information across scattered tools like email, WhatsApp, Google Drive, and calls. This leads to lost context, unclear requirements, delayed project starts, and repeated clarification cycles.

  9. Steps I've taken to troubleshoot: Designed a structured client intake form inside Retool. Created a centralized database for client data and uploaded files. Implemented automated file uploads and storage. Integrated AI inside Retool to summarize client inputs into actionable project briefs. Built a searchable admin dashboard for managing all clients in one place

  10. Additional info:
    Deployment**:** Cloud (Retool Cloud).
    Features**:** Client intake, file uploads, AI summaries, admin dashboard.
    Artifacts**:** Screenshots and demo video included.
    Scalability**:** Can be sold as a SaaS to agencies, studios, and consultants.

1 Like