Manifest

Manifest, the Supabase alternative made for AI code editors

AI coding tools have made frontend generation smooth and fast. With tools like Cursor, Bolt or Lovable, even beginners can build great-looking UIs. But when it comes to the backend, things get messy. LLMs try to generate backend code, but they often produce scattered files in frameworks like FastAPI, Laravel or Rails. These frameworks are solid, but not adapted to prompt-driven workflows. The result is a bloated backend no one can really validate, often unsafe, hard to maintain and impossible to review entirely. You still need backend expertise to understand what the AI has produced and you remain responsible for what gets shipped to production.

Online platforms like Lovable or co.dev rely on Supabase for backend features. Supabase is a great product. But when used in the context of AI-assisted development, it introduces complexity. You now deal with two dashboards, two systems, and an LLM that has no full context of either. You cannot easily version your backend with your frontend. You need to know PostgreSQL. You need to learn the Supabase API. The LLM has to guess and adapt. That breaks the flow and kills what vibe coding is about.

Manifest takes a different approach. It gives you a full backend in a single YAML file. This file is readable and writable by both humans and LLMs. It defines your backend clearly and concisely. You can prompt it, generate it, review it and commit it just like any other file in your repo. No dashboard switching. No hidden logic. No security guessing. Manifest relies on pre-built modules for common features like authentication or file uploads. That means fewer bugs, better security and less time spent reinventing what should already work.

It is open source and fully portable. You install it like any npm package. It runs locally and even works in the browser with SQLite. You can try it instantly in StackBlitz or deploy it on your own infrastructure. It integrates into your dev environment like any other dependency and works out of the box.

Manifest reduces tokens, cuts iteration time, removes backend stress and makes full-stack development possible inside AI editors. It is already used in production by developers who want to move fast without breaking things. If you're tired of cleaning up after your LLM or linking scattered services, Manifest is probably what you've been waiting for.

Give it a try and see what a real AI-friendly backend feels like.