orca-emulator — Claude Code skill: what it does, how to install
Controls booted iOS Simulators inside Orca with a live device view. Handy for running gestures, hardware buttons, accessibility tree checks, and UI verification.
npx skills add stablyai/orca --skill orca-emulator -a claude-codeWhat orca-emulator does
This skill connects your coding agent to a booted Apple Simulator on macOS using Orca's runtime. It sends taps, gestures, keystrokes, hardware button events, and screen rotations while reading back the accessibility tree. Before running actions, build and install your app with xcodebuild or simctl. Android devices and emulators are unsupported here; they require the dedicated Android emulator skill.
Inside Orca, using this interface beats calling raw serve-sim or simctl directly. Orca manages helper lifecycles, device scoping, and worktree contexts automatically. On Linux outside an Orca-managed terminal, bare orca points to the GNOME Orca screen reader and starts audio output on your machine, so you must use orca-ide instead.
Commands retrieve their version-matched workflow guide via <ORCA> skills get orca-emulator. If a command fails with runtime_access_denied, your sandbox blocked the connection. You need escalated permissions rather than restarting Orca or invoking ORCA open.
What it helps with
- send taps, gestures, and hardware button presses to Apple Simulator
- inspect the iOS accessibility tree for UI verification
- rotate the screen of a booted iOS Simulator
- capture simulator evidence after modifying iOS code
Example prompts for the agent
- Interact with the booted iOS Simulator and tap the login button using orca-emulator
- Rotate the Apple Simulator to landscape and inspect the accessibility tree
How to install orca-emulator
1Skills CLI (Vercel)
npx skills add stablyai/orca --skill orca-emulator -a claude-code2Manually: put the files in place
~/.claude/skills/orca-emulator/SKILL.mdCopy the whole skill folder; for one project use .claude/skills/orca-emulator/
1Skills CLI (Vercel)
npx skills add stablyai/orca --skill orca-emulator -a codex2Manually: put the files in place
.agents/skills/orca-emulator/SKILL.mdFor all projects use ~/.agents/skills/
1Skills CLI (Vercel)
npx skills add stablyai/orca --skill orca-emulator -a cursor2Manually: put the files in place
.cursor/skills/orca-emulator/SKILL.mdCursor also reads .agents/skills/ and .claude/skills/
1GitHub CLI
gh skill install stablyai/orca orca-emulator2Manually: put the files in place
.github/skills/orca-emulator/SKILL.md1Skills CLI (Vercel)
npx skills add stablyai/orca --skill orca-emulator -a gemini-cli2Platform CLI
gemini skills install https://github.com/stablyai/orca --path skills/orca-emulatorManually: put the files in place
.devin/skills/orca-emulator/SKILL.mdThe legacy .windsurf/skills/ path still works
Skills CLI (Vercel)
npx skills add stablyai/orca --skill orca-emulator -a opencodeClaude.ai
Zip the folder and upload it in Settings → Capabilities → Skills
From the same set8
The whole set →Similar
Questions about orca-emulator
How to install orca-emulator in Claude Code?
Run this command in your terminal: npx skills add stablyai/orca --skill orca-emulator -a claude-code.
What does orca-emulator do?
It allows your coding agent to control a booted Apple Simulator on macOS, sending gestures, keystrokes, and hardware events while inspecting the accessibility tree in Orca.
Do I need to build the app before using the skill?
Yes, the skill operates on an already booted simulator. You must build and install the iOS application beforehand using xcodebuild or simctl.
Source text
SKILL.md · Apache-2.0
--- name: orca-emulator description: >- iOS Simulator control from inside Orca, with the live device view in Orca's emulator pane. Use when driving a booted Apple Simulator on macOS: taps, gestures, typing, hardware buttons, rotation, and the accessibility tree, or when an iOS change needs simulator evidence. For an Android device or emulator use the Android emulator skill; build and install the app with xcodebuild or simctl first. license: Apache-2.0 --- # Orca Emulator This discovery stub loads the version-matched guide from the Orca executable used for this session. Prefer Orca over raw `serve-sim` or direct `simctl` for simulator control inside Orca; it handles device scoping, helper lifecycle, and worktree context. ## Resolve the CLI for this session Choose the executable once and reuse it for every later command: - If the `ORCA_CLI_COMMAND` environment variable is set, use its value. Orca exports this for managed WSL sessions. - Otherwise, in a dev checkout whose session exposes `ORCA_DEV_REPO_ROOT`, use `orca-dev`. - Otherwise, on Linux outside an Orca-managed terminal, use `orca-ide`. Never run bare `orca` there — outside Orca's terminals it normally resolves to the GNOME Orca screen reader (`/usr/bin/orca`) and starts speech on the user's machine. - Otherwise, use `orca`. Below, `ORCA` is a placeholder for the executable you resolved. Substitute it before running anything; do not create a shell variable or run `ORCA` literally. This works the same way in POSIX shells, PowerShell, and cmd.exe. If the selected executable cannot run, report its exact error and stop. Do not fall through to another executable, which could silently target a different Orca build. ## Load the version-matched guide before running Orca commands ```text ORCA skills get orca-emulator ``` Prefer `--json`. Use the selected executable's `--help` for commands or flags the guide does not cover. If a command reports that Orca is not running, start it with `ORCA open --json` and retry. If it fails with `runtime_access_denied`, your sandbox blocked the connection: re-run it with escalated permissions, and do not run `ORCA open` or restart Orca. If `skills get` is unknown, explain that updating Orca restores the guide; use `--help` for read-only discovery and do not guess unsupported commands.
© stablyai · Apache-2.0 · stablyai/orca