The iOS Live Activity API for anything that speaks HTTP

What is a Live Activity?

A Live Activity is an iOS feature that shows live, glanceable information on the Lock Screen, in the Dynamic Island, and in StandBy — without the recipient ever opening an app. Unlike a push notification that appears once and slips into the list, a Live Activity stays pinned and updates in real time: a build moving through its steps, a timer counting down, a delivery getting closer. PushWard turns a single HTTP request into one.

How the API works

Create an activity, start it, update it, and end it — all through PushWard's REST API with your integration key. Any service that can send an HTTP request can drive what people see at a glance. There are no APNs certificates and no client code to write; PushWard handles delivery through Apple Push Notification service.

# 1. Create an activity
curl -X POST https://api.pushward.app/activities \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer hlk_YOUR_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{ "slug": "deploy", "name": "Deploy to production" }'

# 2. Start the Live Activity on the Lock Screen
curl -X PATCH https://api.pushward.app/activities/deploy \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer hlk_YOUR_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/merge-patch+json" \
  -d '{ "state": "ongoing", "content": {
    "template": "generic", "progress": 0.2,
    "state": "Building...", "accent_color": "cyan"
  } }'

# 3. End it when the task is done
curl -X PATCH https://api.pushward.app/activities/deploy \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer hlk_YOUR_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/merge-patch+json" \
  -d '{ "state": "ended", "content": {
    "template": "generic", "progress": 1, "state": "Deployed"
  } }'

A template for every kind of update

Choose from Live Activity templates built for different jobs — a generic progress bar, a countdown, a step sequence, an alert, a gauge, a timeline sparkline, a board of tiles, or a live event log. Each has a layout tuned for the Lock Screen and Dynamic Island.

Browse the templates →

Works with your stack

Send Live Activities straight from the tools you already run. Ready-made bridges and a hosted webhook relay cover Grafana alerts, Home Assistant automations, GitHub Actions, SABnzbd downloads, Bambu Lab prints, ArgoCD syncs, and anything else that can post JSON.

See all integrations →

Try the iOS Live Activity API

Watch a Live Activity land on a simulated iPhone in the playground, or read the getting-started guide and send your first one with curl in a few minutes.