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What is eigen?

artsy/eigen — explained in plain English

Analysis updated 2026-06-26

★ 3,768TypeScriptAudience · developerComplexity · 4/5LicenseSetup · hard

In one sentence

Eigen is the open-source React Native codebase for Artsy's real iOS and Android mobile app, a production art marketplace where collectors browse, discover, and buy artwork on their phones.

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((Eigen Artsy))
    What it is
      Art marketplace app
      Browse and buy art
      iOS and Android
    Tech
      React Native
      TypeScript
      Shared codebase
    Audience
      Mobile developers
      Open source contributors
    Learning value
      Production patterns
      Large scale React Native
      App Store deployment
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Code map

Detail Auto

An interactive map of this repo's files and how they connect — its source is parsed live in your browser. Click Visualize to build it.

filefunction / class

What do people build with it?

USE CASE 1

Study how a large-scale production React Native app is structured and maintained at a real company

USE CASE 2

Reference how Artsy handles iOS and Android deployment, beta builds, and App Store releases

USE CASE 3

Learn React Native architecture patterns used in an active, high-traffic art marketplace application

What is it built with?

TypeScriptReact NativeiOSAndroid

How does it compare?

artsy/eigenfrejs/freupstash/jstack
Stars3,7683,7673,769
LanguageTypeScriptTypeScriptTypeScript
Setup difficultyhardeasymoderate
Complexity4/53/53/5
Audiencedeveloperdeveloperdeveloper

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you get it running?

Difficulty · hard Time to first run · 1day+

This is Artsy's production app, not a starter template, full setup requires Artsy-specific environment credentials documented in the linked docs folder.

MIT license, use freely for any purpose including commercially, just keep the copyright notice.

So what is it?

Eigen is the source code for Artsy's mobile app, available on both iOS and Android. Artsy is an online art marketplace and discovery platform, and this repository contains the app that users download to browse, discover, and buy art on their phones. The app is in active production use and built with React Native, a framework that lets developers write one shared codebase that runs on both Apple and Android devices. The project is publicly available as part of Artsy's policy of working in the open. Being open source does not mean it is a general-purpose library that others plug into their own projects, it is specifically Artsy's own app, made visible so that developers can learn from it or contribute to it. The README itself is brief and points outward to additional documentation hosted in the repository's docs folder and on Artsy's engineering blog. Details on setting up a local development environment, best practices the team follows, and instructions for deploying beta builds or App Store releases are all covered in those linked documents rather than in the README directly. The repository is named Eigen, which follows Artsy's pattern of naming projects after physics and mathematics concepts. Other mobile projects from Artsy mentioned here, such as Energy and Eidolon, are separate repositories. The code is licensed under MIT.

Copy-paste prompts

Prompt 1
I'm studying the Artsy Eigen codebase. Explain how a React Native app at this scale handles navigation, what patterns and libraries does a production app like this typically use for moving between screens?
Prompt 2
I want to contribute to Artsy Eigen. Walk me through the local development setup steps for getting the app running on an iOS simulator, based on what's typically documented for large React Native projects.
Prompt 3
How does a production React Native app like Eigen handle error boundaries, offline state, and API request retries at scale? Show me the patterns that are common in large-scale RN codebases.
Prompt 4
The Eigen codebase is named after a math concept. Explain how Artsy's naming convention works and what other Artsy mobile projects like Energy and Eidolon are used for.

Frequently asked questions

What is eigen?

Eigen is the open-source React Native codebase for Artsy's real iOS and Android mobile app, a production art marketplace where collectors browse, discover, and buy artwork on their phones.

What language is eigen written in?

Mainly TypeScript. The stack also includes TypeScript, React Native, iOS.

What license does eigen use?

MIT license, use freely for any purpose including commercially, just keep the copyright notice.

How hard is eigen to set up?

Setup difficulty is rated hard, with roughly 1day+ to a first successful run.

Who is eigen for?

Mainly developer.

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