Color changes and animated backgrounds
Anthropic said on Nov. 13 (8:59:59 a.m. Nov. 14 Japan time) through its developer account on X, @ClaudeDevs, that users can now build their own themes, or visual settings for the interface, for the desktop version of its AI coding tool Claude Code. Themes are built with "mods," a mechanism for extending how Claude Code looks and behaves. Users can change the colors and add an animated background, according to the post. Anthropic said users can describe the look they want to Claude and have it build the theme, or get started quickly with the "theme-examples" plugin.
You can now build custom themes for Claude Code on desktop with mods! Change the colors, add an animated background, and make it your own. Just tell Claude how you want it to look, or get started quickly with the theme-examples plugin. We'd love to see what you make!
In a reply to its own post on the same day (9:00:00 a.m. Nov. 14 Japan time), @ClaudeDevs said users need to update the desktop app to the latest version to try it.
Local sessions only for now, cloud coming soon
According to the reply, themes currently work in local sessions in the desktop app, meaning work that runs on the user's own computer. Anthropic said support for cloud sessions is "coming soon."
Update to the latest version of the desktop app to try it. Themes work in local sessions in the desktop app today, support for cloud sessions is coming soon. If you'd like to write one yourself, check out the docs: https://t.co/cNzEm3E9QH
Neither the posts nor the documentation state pricing, eligible plans, regions covered, or when cloud sessions will be supported. The sources checked also do not describe which themes the theme-examples plugin contains.
Colors apply to the "Code" tab, one theme per session
According to the official documentation linked in the reply, "Draw in the interface with a mod," color mods apply to the desktop app's "Code" tab, while Claude Code in the terminal keeps its own colors. A user starts a local session in the Code tab and tells Claude the colors they want, such as cream in light mode and dark brown in dark mode, and Claude writes the mod's files. The Code tab changes color once the mod loads, and users can tell Claude which colors to adjust.
Users who write a theme themselves can use "makeColors," a function that builds a theme from a few hex color codes, and set separate colors for light mode and dark mode. The documentation also includes an example that puts a backdrop behind the conversation and shows how to add a command that removes it.
According to the documentation, each session has only one theme, and when another mod sets or clears a theme, the earlier colors and backdrop disappear. It asks users to use only one theme-setting mod at a time.
Anthropic separately announced updates to "Projects" in Claude Code on the same day.
