# HeyMate

> A little company. A lot of help. HeyMate is an open-source AI companion: bring your own AI—your existing Claude, ChatGPT (Codex), or OpenCode subscription does the work. Free, MIT-licensed screen guidance for desktop apps and websites; it explains the next step, points to it, and waits while you try it. Currently available for macOS. HeyMate does not meter model use; provider limits and optional paid connectors still apply. It also supports specialist mates, routines, approved computer control, signed-in Chrome through its extension, Notes, and AI usage in the notch. See the website and release notes for current demonstrations and release status.

- Website: https://sayheymate.vercel.app
- Source: https://github.com/UmarSiddiqui/heymate
- Download: https://github.com/UmarSiddiqui/heymate/releases/latest/download/HeyMate.dmg
- Releases: https://github.com/UmarSiddiqui/heymate/releases
- Contribute: https://github.com/UmarSiddiqui/heymate/blob/main/CONTRIBUTING.md
- Actual visual answer recordings (condensed, sped up, silent examples): https://sayheymate.vercel.app/#visual-answers
- Privacy: https://sayheymate.vercel.app/privacy
- Permissions: https://sayheymate.vercel.app/permissions
- Guide and common questions: https://sayheymate.vercel.app/how-to-use-heymate#common-questions

## Product facts

- Native SwiftUI, MIT licensed, macOS 14.2 or later. Works on Apple silicon and Intel, with a top-center pill on Macs without a notch.
- Hold Control + Option and ask for help with a desktop app or website. Multi-step guidance can show a plan, point to the current step, wait for a target click or “next,” and capture fresh screen context before continuing. Model mistakes remain possible.
- Screen guidance requires a vision-capable provider. The optional Apple Intelligence brain is text-only, requires a supported Mac running macOS 26 or later, and cannot see the screen.
- Open-source companion using your existing AI subscription. Provider limits still apply.
- Claude Code, Codex, OpenCode, and a custom Anthropic-compatible API are supported routes. Capabilities differ by provider. HeyMate is MIT licensed, adds no subscription fee, and does not meter model use; provider limits and optional API/voice/connector charges apply.
- HeyMate is the main agent you talk to. Other agents are made from one sentence: the user's own AI drafts a name, personality, habits, what the agent must ask before doing, and a first task. Habits are saved in the agent's AGENTS.md. Agents can have scheduled routines.
- Agents show a read-only plan before approved execution. Workspace snapshots support local undo. Undo cannot reverse sent messages or remote service changes. Approved work can continue in a background helper after the app quits.
- Optional notch tools include music controls, file shelf with AirDrop, timers, clipboard history, calendar, battery, volume and brightness controls, camera mirror, and downloads.
- Integrations are shared by HeyMate and every agent: Apple apps, local CLIs, MCP, and Composio with the user's credentials. Connected services have their own access and billing rules.

## Privacy and storage

- Chats, memory, mates, and routines are local under ~/Library/Application Support/heymate/. HeyMate chat history contains text, not screenshot or audio bytes.
- Active interactions that need screen context can capture images, including new captures between walkthrough steps. Some integrations write temporary screenshots and clean them up when requests/processes end. The optional local-control interface schedules screenshot cleanup after ten minutes. Interrupted cleanup can leave files behind.
- Relevant questions and screen context go to the selected AI provider. Its retention and the CLI's session history are separate from HeyMate's local chat history.
- Connector credentials are in a local file restricted to the Mac account, not the Keychain. They authenticate with services the user connects. There is no HeyMate account service storing chats.
- Apple Speech uses local recognition when available for the language and can otherwise contact Apple. Downloaded Parakeet listening and bundled Phonon speaking process locally on supported Apple silicon Macs. Optional ElevenLabs receives the audio or text it processes.
- Enabled routines, standing orders, and approved coding jobs can run in the background. Do not describe HeyMate as an app where nothing runs in the background.
- App PostHog usage events require a configured build key and explicit user opt-in, off by default. Settings > Privacy & Data allows withdrawal. This is distinct from website tracking; the homepage has no Hotjar recording and Vercel Web Analytics is disabled. See the privacy page for details.

## Install

Download the DMG and drag HeyMate into Applications. Current builds use a stable self-signed certificate; they are not Apple Developer ID-signed or notarized. If macOS blocks first launch, review the app and use System Settings > Privacy & Security > Open Anyway if choosing to proceed.

Alternative installers are `brew install umarsiddiqui/tap/heymate` or the script at https://sayheymate.vercel.app/install.sh. Inspect the script before running it; it replaces /Applications/HeyMate.app and removes quarantine. This does not provide notarization.

Grant the requested permissions, complete the selected provider's CLI sign-in, and try a small task with sample content. No comparative superiority, reliability percentage, or active-user count is established by this summary.