How to Create AI-Assisted Mind Mapping in WPF Diagram Using OpenAI

What if your app could think visually—just like you do?
Organizing ideas and concepts efficiently is crucial for effective brainstorming and project planning. Mind maps offer a visual representation of information, making it easier to comprehend complex relationships and hierarchies.

In this blog, we’ll guide you through building an AI-assisted mind mapping tool in WPF Diagram by combining OpenAI’s natural language capabilities with Syncfusion^® WPF Diagram library, which allows developers to convert plain text into dynamic, interactive mind maps automatically.

Let’s dive in!

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure your environment is ready with the following:

• Visual Studio enabled with the .NET desktop development workload, including everything needed to create WPF applications.
• .NET Framework or SDK installed for your WPF project with the appropriate version.
• Syncfusion’s Diagram Library and AI SDKs are included in your project.
• A valid API key from OpenAI or an alternative AI provider such as Azure OpenAI.

Workflow explanation

The workflow for creating an AI-assisted mind map involves several key steps:

1. User input: The user provides a textual description, or keywords related to the concepts they wish to visualize.
2. AI processing: The input text is sent to OpenAI, which processes it to generate a Mermaid-structured data representing the mind map’s nodes and connections.
3. Diagram rendering: The generated data is then used by Syncfusion’s Diagram component to render the interactive mind map within the WPF application.

This seamless integration allows users to transform their ideas into visually appealing mind maps effortlessly.

Step-by-step implementation

Step 1: Set up the WPF project

Start by creating a new WPF project and installing the required dependencies.

• Create a new WPF project:

  Navigate to File, then select New, then Project in Visual Studio. In the Create a new project dialog, search for WPF App and select WPF App (.NET Core). Click Next, provide a name for your project, and then click Create.

• Install Syncfusion^® Diagram and OpenAI Libraries:

  Install-Package Syncfusion.SfDiagram.WPF
  Install-Package OpenAI-DotNet  // Or relevant package
  

Step 2: Configuring the AI service

To integrate AI capabilities, configure the Azure OpenAI service by specifying the ModelName, Key, and the EndPoint. The following code initializes the AI service and defines a utility function to handle requests.

internal static async Task<bool> ValidateCredentials()
{
    ErrorMessage = string.Empty;
    try
    {
        Uri uriResult;
        bool isValidUri = Uri.TryCreate(DemoBrowserViewModel.EndPoint, UriKind.Absolute, out uriResult)
                          && (uriResult.Scheme == Uri.UriSchemeHttp || uriResult.Scheme == Uri.UriSchemeHttps);
        if (!isValidUri || !DemoBrowserViewModel.EndPoint.Contains("http"))
        {
            ErrorMessage = "Please enter valid EndPoint.";
        }
        else
        {
            clientAI = new AzureOpenAIClient(
                new Uri(DemoBrowserViewModel.EndPoint),
                new AzureKeyCredential(DemoBrowserViewModel.Key)
            ).AsChatClient(modelId: DemoBrowserViewModel.ModelName);
            if (ClientAI != null)
            {
                await ClientAI.CompleteAsync("Hello, Test Check");
            }
        }
    }
    catch (Exception ex)
    {
        // Check the error message and display the appropriate message
        if (ex.Message.Contains("API deployment"))
        {
            ErrorMessage = "Please enter valid ModelName.";
        }
        else if (ex.Message.Contains("Access denied"))
        {
            ErrorMessage = "Please enter valid Key.";
        }
        else
        {
            ErrorMessage = "Please enter valid EndPoint.";
        }
    }
    IsCredentialValid = string.IsNullOrEmpty(ErrorMessage) ? true : false;
    return IsCredentialValid;
}

Ensure to replace the EndPoint, Key and ModelName with your Azure AI service details.

Step 3: Configure Syncfusion^® Diagram for visualization

The Syncfusion^® WPF Diagram is a feature-rich architecture diagram library for visualizing, creating, and editing interactive diagrams. Its intuitive API and rich feature set make it easy to create, style, and manage mind maps.

<syncfusion:SfDiagram x:Name="Diagram"
                      Grid.Row="1"
                      Margin="2,0,5,5"
                      Nodes="{Binding Nodes, Mode=TwoWay}"
                      Connectors="{Binding Connectors, Mode=TwoWay}"
                      Tool="{Binding Tool}"
                      DefaultConnectorType="{Binding DefaultConnectorType}"
                      DataSourceSettings="{Binding DataSourceSettings}"
                      ExportSettings="{Binding ExportSettings}"
                      LayoutManager="{Binding LayoutManager, Mode=TwoWay}"
                      SelectedItems="{Binding SelectedItems}"
                      ItemAddedCommand="{Binding ItemAddedCommand}"
                      NodeChangedCommand="{Binding NodeChangedCommand}"
                      ItemSelectedCommand="{Binding ItemSelectedCommand}"
                      ItemDeletingCommand="{Binding ItemDeletingCommand}"
                      Menu="{x:Null}">
    <syncfusion:SfDiagram.SnapSettings>
        <syncfusion:SnapSettings SnapToObject="All" SnapConstraints="All"/>
    </syncfusion:SfDiagram.SnapSettings>
    <syncfusion:SfDiagram.HorizontalRuler>
        <syncfusion:Ruler Orientation="Horizontal"/>
    </syncfusion:SfDiagram.HorizontalRuler>
    <syncfusion:SfDiagram.VerticalRuler>
        <syncfusion:Ruler Orientation="Vertical"/>
    </syncfusion:SfDiagram.VerticalRuler>
</syncfusion:SfDiagram>

This configuration creates a responsive diagram with mind map layout, ruler settings, snap settings, scroll settings and some event bindings.

Step 4: Create an AI assist dialog for user input

Let’s create a dialog for AI-assisted mind map generation with suggested prompts, a textbox for user input and a button to send the user input to OpenAI.

<Popup x:Name="AIAssistPopup"
       StaysOpen="False"
       Placement="Center"
       AllowsTransparency="True"
       IsOpen="False">
    <Border BorderBrush="#0E000000"
            BorderThickness="2"
            Background="#FFFFFFFF"
            CornerRadius="8"
            Width="576"
            Height="262"
            Padding="24">
        <Border.Effect>
            <DropShadowEffect BlurRadius="6"
                              ShadowDepth="1"
                              Direction="270"
                              Color="#CC000000"
                              Opacity="0.42"
                              RenderingBias="Performance"/>
        </Border.Effect>
        <Grid>
            <!-- Header Section -->
            <StackPanel Orientation="Horizontal"
                        VerticalAlignment="Top">
                <Path Width="16"
                      Height="16"
                      Fill="{Binding Foreground, ElementName=aiAssistText}"
                      Stretch="Uniform">
                    <Path.Data>
                        <GeometryGroup>
                            <PathGeometry Figures="M12.7393 1.39699C12.6915 1.17019 ..." />
                            <!-- Split long geometry data into multiple lines if needed -->
                        </GeometryGroup>
                    </Path.Data>
                </Path>
                <TextBlock x:Name="aiAssistText"
                           Text="AI Assist"
                           Margin="6,0,0,0"
                           FontWeight="DemiBold"
                           FontSize="20"/>
            </StackPanel>

            <!-- Suggested Prompts Section -->
            <StackPanel HorizontalAlignment="Left"
                        VerticalAlignment="Top"
                        Margin="0,36,0,0">
                <TextBlock Text="Suggested Prompts"
                           Margin="0,0,0,8"/>
                <Button x:Name="firstButton"
                        Content="Mind Map Diagram for Syncfusion Components"
                        HorizontalAlignment="Left"
                        Padding="8,6"
                        Margin="0,0,0,8"
                        Click="GenerateDiagram_Clicked"/>
                <Button x:Name="secondButton"
                        Content="Mind Map Diagram for Organizational Research"
                        HorizontalAlignment="Left"
                        Padding="8,6"
                        Margin="0,0,0,8"
                        Click="GenerateDiagram_Clicked"/>
                <Button x:Name="thirdButton"
                        Content="Mind Map Diagram for Meeting Agenda"
                        HorizontalAlignment="Left"
                        Padding="8,6"
                        Margin="0,0,0,8"
                        Click="GenerateDiagram_Clicked"/>
            </StackPanel>

            <!-- Input Section -->
            <StackPanel VerticalAlignment="Bottom">
                <Grid>
                    <Grid.ColumnDefinitions>
                        <ColumnDefinition Width="*"/>
                    </Grid.ColumnDefinitions>
                    <Grid.RowDefinitions>
                        <RowDefinition Height="Auto"/>
                    </Grid.RowDefinitions>
                    <TextBox x:Name="popupTextBox"
                             Grid.Column="0"
                             Grid.Row="0"
                             KeyDown="popupTextBox_KeyDown"
                             Height="32"
                             HorizontalAlignment="Stretch"
                             VerticalAlignment="Center"
                             TextChanged="popupTextBox_TextChanged"/>
                    <Button x:Name="generateDiagramButton"
                            Grid.Column="0"
                            Grid.Row="0"
                            HorizontalAlignment="Right"
                            VerticalAlignment="Bottom"
                            Width="48"
                            Height="28"
                            IsEnabled="False"
                            BorderThickness="0"
                            Style="{StaticResource WPFPrimaryButtonStyle}"
                            Click="GenerateDiagram_Clicked"
                            Margin="0,0,0,3">
                        <Button.Content>
                            <Viewbox Width="18"
                                     Height="18"
                                     Stretch="Uniform">
                                <Path Stroke="{Binding RelativeSource={RelativeSource AncestorType=Button}, Path=Foreground}"
                                      StrokeThickness="1"
                                      Data="M2.5 7.5L0.5 14.5L15.5 7.5L0.5 0.5L2.5 7.5ZM2.5 7.5H9.5"/>
                            </Viewbox>
                        </Button.Content>
                    </Button>
                </Grid>
            </StackPanel>
        </Grid>
    </Border>
</Popup>

private async void GenerateDiagram_Clicked(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
    AIAssistPopup.IsOpen = false;
    sfBusyIndicator.Visibility = Visibility.Visible;
    try
    {
        string prompt = string.Empty;

        if (sender is Button button)
        {
            if (button.Content is Viewbox && !string.IsNullOrWhiteSpace(popupTextBox.Text))
            {
                prompt = popupTextBox.Text;
            }
            else if (button.Content != null && !(button.Content is Viewbox))
            {
                prompt = button.Content.ToString();
            }
        }
        else if (sender is TextBox textBox && !string.IsNullOrWhiteSpace(textBox.Text))
        {
            prompt = textBox.Text;
        }

        if (!string.IsNullOrWhiteSpace(prompt))
        {
            await LoadDiagram(prompt);
        }
    }
    catch (Exception)
    {
        // Optional: log or handle exception
    }
    finally
    {
        sfBusyIndicator.Visibility = Visibility.Hidden;
        popupTextBox.Text = string.Empty;
    }
}

Step 5: Integrating OpenAI for Text-to-MindMap conversion

Implement a function convertTextToMindMap that acts as the main driver to transform AI-generated text into a mind map using Syncfusion’s Diagram API.

private string BuildCompletePromptWithSystem(string systemPrompt)
{
    string mindMapGuideLines = @"
You are an assistant tasked with generating structured mind map diagram data sources in Mermaid syntax for the topic '{0}' based on user queries. The output should follow these guidelines:
1. The root parent should not have any tab space indentation.
2. Each sublevel should have tab indentation based on its depth.
3. Do not use any symbols like '+' or '-' before any level of data.
4. Do not add extra comments or explanations in the output.
5. Always start the structure with the word 'mindmap' as the root.

Example output:

mindmap
    Learn Hacking
        Hacking Basics
            Ethical Hacking
                White Hat Hacking
                Black Hat Hacking
            Hacking Tools
                Metasploit
                Nmap
                Burp Suite
                Wireshark
        Hacking Techniques
            Phishing
            Social Engineering
            SQL Injection
            Cross-Site Scripting (XSS)
        Hacking Environments
            Linux for Hacking
            Virtual Machines
            Kali Linux
            BackBox
        Hacking Skills
            Programming Languages
                Python
                C/C++
                JavaScript
            Networking Basics
            Operating Systems
            Web Application Security

Note: Only return the structured Mermaid mind map syntax. No additional comments or symbols are allowed and capitalization for every word.";
    return string.Format(mindMapGuideLines, systemPrompt);
}

private async Task LoadDiagram(string input)
{
    if (!string.IsNullOrWhiteSpace(input))
    {
        string result = await semanticKernelOpenAI.GetResponseFromAI(input, AIDiagramLayout.MindMap);

        Diagram.LayoutManager = new LayoutManager
        {
            Layout = new MindMapTreeLayout
            {
                HorizontalSpacing = 50,
                VerticalSpacing = 50,
                Orientation = Orientation.Horizontal,
                SplitMode = MindMapTreeMode.Custom
            },
            RefreshFrequency = RefreshFrequency.ArrangeParsing
        };

        if (!string.IsNullOrEmpty(result))
        {
            Diagram.LoadDiagramFromMermaid(result);

            if (DataContext is SmartMindMapViewModel viewModel &&
                Diagram.LayoutManager.Layout is MindMapTreeLayout layoutManager &&
                layoutManager.LayoutRoot is NodeViewModel layoutRootNode)
            {
                viewModel.SetNodeColors(layoutRootNode);
            }

            if (Diagram.LayoutManager.Layout is MindMapTreeLayout layout &&
                layout.LayoutRoot is INode layoutRootINode &&
                layoutRootINode.Info is INodeInfo nodeInfo)
            {
                nodeInfo.BringIntoCenter();
            }

            (Diagram.Info as IGraphInfo)?.Commands.Zoom.Execute(new ZoomPositionParameter
            {
                ZoomCommand = ZoomCommand.Zoom,
                ZoomTo = 0.75
            });
        }
    }
}

The core function convertTextToMindMap sends a request to the OpenAI API with a user prompt to generate Mermaid-structured mind map data from text descriptions, and then uses the Syncfusion^® Diagram’s loadDiagramFromMermaid method to render the mind map.

After executing the above code examples, we’ll get the output that resembles the following image.

GitHub reference

Explore the full working demo on GitHub to see the complete implementation.

Conclusion

Thanks for reading! In this blog, we’ve explored how to build an AI-assisted mind mapping tool in WPF by integrating OpenAI’s GPT model with Syncfusion^® WPF Diagram component.

The solution parses natural language input, extracts hierarchical relationships, and dynamically renders them as interactive nodes and connectors. This approach streamlines the ideation process, reduces manual diagramming, and enhances the usability of WPF applications for brainstorming and planning tasks.

By combining prompt engineering, layout algorithms, and real-time diagram generation, developers can deliver smarter, more intuitive user experiences directly within desktop environments.

You can check out all the Diagram features in our release notes and What’s New pages. Existing customers can download the latest version of Essential Studio^® from the license and downloads page. If you are not a customer, try our 30-day free trial to check out these new features.

If you have questions, contact us through our support forum, support portal, or feedback portal.  We are always happy to assist you!

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