TL;DR: Yes. TaloTrace, an AI QA platform that tests web, iOS and Android apps, lets you start a run from the app or through the API, choosing the scenarios, build, and device profile yourself. Either way it is the same on-demand run, so your own scripts or internal tools can start one without anyone opening TaloTrace.
Key Takeaways
Same choices, no dashboard needed: TaloTrace runs can be started from the app or through the API, with the same choice of scenarios, build, and device profile either way.
Two triggers today: on demand (app or API) and a recurring daily or weekly schedule are the only ways to start a run.
Same credit check: an API-triggered run passes the same credit check as a manual one before it starts.
Same output: Findings, evidence, and severity work the same way no matter which trigger started the run.
Not a CI/CD integration: an API call is not a pull-request check or a pipeline gate, and pull-request-triggered runs are not available today.
Can I Start an AI QA Test Run Through an API?
Yes. TaloTrace lets you start a run at any time, either from the app or through the API, and both paths give you the same choices: which scenarios to run, which build to test, and which device profile to use. An API-triggered run is an on-demand TaloTrace run started by a call from your own script or tool instead of a click in the app. If your team already runs its own scripts or internal tools, they can start a TaloTrace run the same way, without anyone opening a dashboard.
Why Trigger Runs From Your Own Scripts Instead of a Dashboard?
A test run that only starts from a UI depends on someone remembering to click it, and that step is easy to skip when the person who owns it is busy or out. DORA's guidance on test automation describes manual regression testing as time-consuming and expensive to perform, which makes it a bottleneck.
Starting a run through the API lets a script or internal tool your team already maintains kick off a run on your own logic and timing, rather than adding a manual step to someone's day. It is a call your code makes, not a plug-in that sits inside a pipeline.
What Do You Choose When You Start a Run via API?
You choose the same three things you would choose in the app:
Scenarios: the tests to run, grouped into a Test Plan (a folder of Scenarios).
Build: the build to test them against.
Device profile: the device or OS configuration to run them on.
Either way, it is the same on-demand run; the API is simply another way to start it.
What Happens After an API-Triggered Run Starts?
Every run passes the same credit check against your plan before anything executes, whether it was started from the app, through the API, or by a recurring schedule. TaloTrace then picks the execution plane automatically from your app's platform:
a browser for web apps
an Android emulator for Android apps
an Apple iOS Simulator for iOS apps
There is no hardware for you to provision or attach.
When one submission asks for more than one device configuration, each one runs on its own lane, so a slow scenario on one profile does not hold up the others. The guide to running app tests on multiple devices in parallel covers how those lanes work.
Login handling stays the same too. You save the test accounts TaloTrace should sign in with once per project, and each scenario can inherit the project default account, use a specific saved one, or run with no login at all, whether the run started from the app or the API.
What Do You Get Back From an API-Triggered Run?
You get the same output as a run started in the app. Each run finishes as a Trace: a set of Findings, each backed by a screen recording, TaloTrace's reasoning, and step-by-step reproduction you can open from the run's Evidence view. Severity uses five levels, from Critical (P0) to Trivial (P4), and ratings follow your own triage guidance if you have supplied a custom severity rubric.
Findings are deduplicated within a run, so the same defect is not reported to you more than once. A matching candidate in a later run is routed to the issue TaloTrace already tracks instead of surfacing as new, as the guide to stopping duplicate bug tickets explains.
Results start hidden by default. A Finding becomes visible once a reviewer approves it, or once the project is configured to auto-approve, and TaloTrace notifies you in-app and by email when results publish or when something needs a reviewer's attention, however the run was triggered. The reasons behind that gate are covered in why QA test results stay hidden until someone approves them.
What Makes TaloTrace Different, However You Trigger It?
Triggering a run via API does not change what TaloTrace does once it starts. You still get goal-based test building rather than hand-written scripts: point it at your app, optionally describe the flow you care about in plain language, and it plans and drives the journey itself, as shown in this walkthrough of testing a checkout flow without a test script.
TaloTrace navigates by looking at the screen rather than relying on brittle element IDs, so it keeps working when your UI changes, and an automated trigger does not turn into an automated maintenance burden. Every Finding is also independently reviewed before it reaches you, so what you get back is not raw, unchecked output. That review step is the reason you shouldn't trust every AI QA bug report that arrives without one.
What Are the Limits of Triggering a Run via API?
An API call is not a CI/CD integration. Keep these limits in mind:
No pull-request trigger: TaloTrace does not run on every pull request, post a check back to GitHub, or gate a merge today. Treat the API as an on-demand call from your own scripts, not a pipeline plug-in.
Two triggers only: runs start on demand (app or API) or on a recurring daily or weekly schedule at a wall-clock time in your timezone. There is no free-form cron, and a scheduled run always tests the latest finalized build. Scheduled runs that re-test critical user flows cover that path in more detail.
Plan-gated device profiles: the free trial runs the default profile for your platform, and alternate profiles unlock on paid tiers.
How Do You Get Access to Trigger Runs via API?
TaloTrace is in beta today, and access starts with an application. Once your team is set up, you can start on-demand runs from the app or the API. Most tiers are published and buyable directly on the pricing page, with custom terms available at enterprise scale; check it for what each tier includes.
Beta is open now. Apply for early access.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to use the TaloTrace dashboard to start a run?
No. You can start a run from the app or through the API at any time, choosing the scenarios, the build, and the device profile either way.
Can I trigger TaloTrace automatically on every pull request?
Not today. Pull-request-triggered runs are not a shipped capability. The two ways to start a run are on demand, from the app or the API, and a recurring daily or weekly schedule.
Does an API-triggered run cost anything different from a manual one?
No. Every run, however it is started, passes the same credit check against your plan before it begins.
What do I get back after a run I started via API finishes?
The same output as any other run: Findings backed by a screen recording, TaloTrace's reasoning and steps, and severity that follows your own rubric if you've set one. Results stay hidden until a reviewer approves them, unless the project is configured to auto-approve.
Can I choose which device configuration a run uses when I trigger it via API?
Yes, you choose the device profile when you start the run. The free trial runs the default profile for the app's platform, and alternate profiles unlock on paid tiers.
Do I need to handle logins differently when I trigger a run via API?
No. Login handling is configured once per project through stored test accounts. Each scenario inherits the project default account, uses a specific saved one, or runs with no login at all, the same whether the run started from the app or the API.
