CLI-First Development with Antigravity Image Pipeline

Most AI coding tools can't generate images. Antigravity can, but it's memory-hungry — fine for prompting Nano Banana, heavy for long coding sessions. This pattern splits the work: fast CLI tools handle code, Antigravity handles images. Both under one $19.99/mo Google AI Pro plan.

Overview

The pattern has four stages:

1. Code — Use lean CLI tools (Claude Code, OpenCode) for all development. Fast, no resource drain, no background indexing.
2. Placeholder — During build, drop in placeholder images. Keep shipping code without blocking on assets.
3. Generate — Switch to Antigravity and prompt Nano Banana for final images. Hero images, OG images, UI mockup references, diagrams.
4. Compress — Run cwebp on generated images. Ship production-ready WebP assets.

The key insight: Antigravity 2.0 can code, but it's memory-intensive. CLI tools are lean and fast. Antigravity's real differentiator is Nano Banana access under the same Pro plan — no other coding tool generates images natively.

Key Features

• Full-stack development under one $19.99/mo subscription — code + images
• No per-image billing, no separate API key, no metering anxiety
• CLI tools stay fast and responsive — Antigravity only handles the image step
• cwebp compression keeps generated images production-ready
• Works with any CLI tool — Claude Code, OpenCode, agy, whatever you prefer

Installation & Setup

CLI tools

Any fast CLI agent works. The pattern is tool-agnostic:

# Claude Code
npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code

# OpenCode
npm install -g opencode

# Antigravity CLI (replaces Gemini CLI)
curl -fsSL https://antigravity.google/cli/install.sh | bash
# Binary is 'agy', not 'antigravity'

Antigravity for image generation

Antigravity 2.0 is a standalone desktop app. The old VS Code fork (Antigravity IDE) also works if you prefer it. Either way, Nano Banana is native — no separate setup.

Important: Antigravity 2.0 and the old IDE cannot run simultaneously. Pick one. If you install 2.0 and want the IDE back, you need a full purge first.

WebP compression

# macOS
brew install webp

# Linux (Ubuntu/Debian)
sudo apt install webp
# Other distros: package may be named libwebp-tools

# Basic usage
cwebp -q 80 input.png -o output.webp

# Batch compress a directory
for f in *.png; do cwebp -q 80 "$f" -o "${f%.png}.webp"; done

Configuration

cwebp quality settings by use case

Lossless option for diagrams

cwebp -lossless diagram.png -o diagram.webp

Workflow

Stage 1: Build with CLI tools

All coding happens in Claude Code, OpenCode, or agy. Generate pages, write content, build the site. Use placeholder images:

<!-- Placeholder during development -->
<img src="/images/placeholder-hero.png" alt="Hero" />

Stage 2: Generate images in Antigravity

When the code is stable, switch to Antigravity for assets. Open the app and prompt Nano Banana directly:

Generate a hero image for a developer tools landing page.
Dark theme, abstract code patterns, blue (#3B82F6) accent.
16:9 aspect ratio, 2K resolution.

Save the output to your project's image directory.

Stage 3: Compress and integrate

# Compress to WebP
cwebp -q 85 generated-hero.png -o public/images/hero.webp

# Update the reference

<img src="/images/hero.webp" alt="Hero" />

When to Use

• Building landing pages that need hero images
• Generating OG images for blog posts and content pages
• Creating UI mockup references before coding a component
• Producing diagram illustrations for documentation
• Any project where visual assets and code live together

Pro Plan vs Free vs API

Best Practices

Keep Antigravity for images only

It can code, but it's resource-intensive. CLI tools give you speed and responsiveness for the actual development work. Use Antigravity when you specifically need image generation.

Prompt Nano Banana effectively

Be specific about subjects, colors (use hex codes), fonts, lighting, and composition. See the Nano Banana prompts section for detailed prompt patterns.

Compress before shipping

Generated images are uncompressed PNGs. Always run cwebp before deploying. Hero images at quality 85, diagrams at 90, thumbnails at 75.

Use the right model

Nano Banana 2 (gemini-3.1-flash-image-preview) is the default. Nano Banana Pro (gemini-3-pro-image-preview) for higher quality at 2K/4K resolution. Both available in Antigravity under the Pro plan.

Troubleshooting

Antigravity 2.0 replaced my IDE

The May 2026 I/O update silently replaced the VS Code fork with a standalone chat app. If you want the old IDE back: uninstall 2.0 completely, download Antigravity IDE from antigravity.google/releases (v1.23.2), and set "update.mode": "manual" in settings.

Images look wrong or low quality

Check the model — Nano Banana 2 vs Nano Banana Pro differ in resolution and quality. Be hyper-specific in prompts. Use photographic terms, hex codes for colors, and describe lighting explicitly. The DeepMind prompt guide has detailed examples.

WebP files are too large

Lower the quality flag. For most web images, quality 75–80 produces visually identical results at half the file size.

Related Integrations

• Driving Gemini with Ralph Loops — Claude designs, Gemini CLI executes with Ralph loop verification
• Hooks + DeepSeek API — Offload bulk generation to DeepSeek via Claude hooks
• Hermes Cleanup Loop — OpenCode configures Hermes for autonomous task execution
• Nano Banana Prompts — Prompt patterns for every image type