9.3 macOS Automation: Native Apps, Office Apps & AppleScript

9.3 macOS Automation: Native Apps, Office Apps & AppleScript

Core Concept: UiPath automations can run on Apple computers through UiPath Assistant for Mac and the macOS Robot. The exam description lists three macOS skills: UI automation for native macOS apps, Office desktop automation, and scripting, such as AppleScript. Everything starts with the rule that macOS runs only cross-platform projects.

---

The Platform Pieces

---

Browser Automation on macOS

Browser automation is supported in Chrome and Safari. You design the automation in Studio Web, using either browser, and start it from the macOS Assistant. A local macOS Robot, installed in advance and connected to Orchestrator, carries out the run.

---

Native macOS App Automation

UiPath's history here is a common exam trap:

• 2024.10 LTS (preview). Native UI automation on macOS arrived in preview for Java desktop applications in attended scenarios. You built in Studio Desktop on Windows with a cross-platform project, turned on Enable Java automation (preview) in the project's UI Automation settings, ran on the Mac robot through Assistant, and debugged from Studio Web or with Remote Debugging.
• 2025.10 release (general availability, June 2025). UI-based desktop automation on macOS became generally available. You can design automations for Mac desktop apps directly on macOS in Studio Web, in Safari or Chrome, and any macOS desktop application is supported. UiPath's examples are Keynote, Numbers, Mail, the Microsoft Office apps, and Java apps such as SAP GUI. The same release added a cross-platform Selection Helper and the Advanced Selector Editor for indicating targets from Studio Web.

For Java apps, the UiPath extension for Java loads into Java AWT/Swing interfaces. It works automatically for Java 8. For Java 9 or newer, the application's runtime must include the jdk.attach module, or the extension is loaded from a custom folder.

---

Office Desktop Apps on a Mac

Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint for Mac are native macOS applications. With desktop UI automation generally available, you automate them like any other Mac app: use Application/Browser scopes, indicated targets, and selectors built in Studio Web. Keep two points in mind:

• Many Windows Office activities rely on the Windows desktop application and are not part of a cross-platform project. Check each activity's project compatibility before designing for a Mac.
• For Apple's own productivity apps, UiPath publishes dedicated activity packages, such as Apple Numbers (Get Sheets, Read Cell, Read Range, Write Cell, Write Range) and Apple Mail (For Each Email, List Accounts, Send Mail). They run only on a Mac with the respective app installed.

---

Scripting with AppleScript and Shortcuts

The Apple Scripting activities package runs macOS-native automation from a workflow:

Scripts are useful for tasks the UI does not expose well: telling an application to open a document, reading system settings, or controlling apps that publish an AppleScript dictionary. The packages run only on macOS machines that have the target programs installed.

---

Building, Running, and Debugging

Worked Example: A Mac-Based Expense Filing Automation

A finance team works on MacBooks and wants an attended automation that files receipts:

1. Design a cross-platform project in Studio Web, using Chrome on the Mac.
2. Read the receipt list from a Numbers spreadsheet with the Apple Numbers Read Range activity.
3. Enter each receipt in the expense web portal with Modern UI activities inside Use Application/Browser; the Chrome extension for Mac must be installed.
4. Tell Finder to move processed PDFs into an Archive folder with Invoke Apple Script, and read the script's output to confirm the move.
5. Debug with Debug on Local Machine, which requires Assistant for Mac, then publish to Orchestrator.
6. Run from UiPath Assistant on each finance user's Mac.

If a colleague later asks to run the same automation on a Windows laptop, it can, because it is cross-platform. The Apple-specific activities, however, work only where macOS and those apps exist, so wrap them in a check or keep them in a Mac-only workflow.