01
Real-time web search, not stale training data.
OpenBot queries the live web on every request. You get answers grounded in what is happening right now, not what a model learned months ago.
Open beta — free forever
Open-source
Grok Bot.
Real-time web search, deep reasoning, direct answers. Free on Mac and in your browser. No subscription, no API key required.
Two surfaces
One open core. Two ways to use it.
Mac app
OpenBot for Mac
A lightweight menu-bar app. Ask anything, get live web answers without leaving your workflow. On-device, no subscription.
Download for Mac — Free
Fully open-source. No API key required.
Browser
OpenBot in Browser
Not a Chrome extension. A lightweight web UI you open in any browser tab. Search the live web, ask questions, get direct sourced answers right on the page.
Open App
No install needed. Just open and ask.
How it works
Ask anything. Get real answers.
OpenBot searches the live web on every query, reads the top sources, reasons over them, and streams you a direct answer with citations.
02
Deep reasoning over search results.
OpenBot does not just retrieve. It reads, cross-references, and synthesizes. Ask complex multi-part questions and get coherent, sourced answers.
03
Answers inline in your browser.
Open OpenBot in a browser tab alongside whatever you are reading. Ask questions about what is on screen. No switching apps, no copy-pasting.
04
Fully open-source. Fork it. Own it.
Every line of OpenBot is on GitHub. Self-host it, swap in your own model, or modify the system prompt. No black box, no vendor lock-in.
Under the hood
Ask a question. OpenBot finds the answer.
Type or speak your question. OpenBot searches the live web, reads the top sources, reasons over them, and streams you a direct answer.
SEARCHING 0.8s
openbot_query.json
010:00.2query received: "latest xAI funding round"
020:00.5web search: 5 sources retrieved
030:00.7reasoning over results...
040:00.8streaming answer with citations
Why OpenBot exists
Grok is great. But it is closed.
xAI's Grok Bot showed what a real-time search AI should feel like. OpenBot is the open-source answer. Same live-web intelligence, same direct answers, no subscription, no walled garden.
Open weights. Open code. Open forever.
How it fits together
What makes OpenBot different.
You
QuestionVoiceHighlight
→
OpenBot
Searches + reasons
→
Your answer
Direct answerLive citationsDeep reasoning
→
On your terms
Self-hostableMIT licensedAny model
OpenBot sits between your question and the live web. No middleman, no subscription.
Real-time web grounding
Every query hits the live web. No stale training cutoffs. OpenBot always searches before it answers.
Open-source forever
MIT licensed. Fork it, self-host it, modify the system prompt. OpenBot is a foundation you can build on.
OpenBot in the wild
Built for anyone who wants real answers.
Breaking news
Ask about any live event and get a sourced, synthesized answer. OpenBot reads the articles so you do not have to.
Research
Deep multi-source research in seconds. Ask a complex question and get a coherent answer that cross-references multiple live sources.
Compare anything
Ask OpenBot to compare two products, candidates, or ideas. It searches both and gives you a structured take.
Fact-check
Paste a claim and ask if it is true. OpenBot searches primary sources and tells you what it found.
Inline reading aid
Reading a long article? Open OpenBot in another tab and ask questions about what you are reading. Get the answer without switching context.
Self-hostable
Run OpenBot on your own infra. Swap in any model. Set your own system prompt. Your data never leaves your stack.
OpenBot in Browser
Grok-style answers in any browser tab.
Not an extension. A fast, lightweight web UI you open in any browser. Search the live web, ask questions, get direct sourced answers. No install required.
01
Open in any tab
Just open the URL. No sign-up, no install, no API key needed to get started. Works in Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Arc.
02
Ask anything
Type your question. OpenBot searches the live web and answers you directly with sources. No more link lists to sift through.
03
Always fresh answers
Every response is grounded in live web results. No training cutoffs. OpenBot searches before it answers, every single time.
Works in any browser tab, no extension needed
Live web search on every query
Direct answers with citations, not link dumps
Fully open-source, MIT licensed
Free. Always.
FAQ
Good questions.
An open-source Grok Bot: a real-time web search AI that gives you direct, reasoned answers instead of a list of links. Available as a Mac menu-bar app and a browser web app, both free.
Grok Bot is impressive but closed, paywalled, and tied to X Premium. OpenBot gives everyone the same live-web reasoning capability. Free, forkable, and self-hostable.
By default OpenBot works with any OpenAI-compatible API. You can point it at GPT-4o, Claude, a local Ollama instance, or any model you prefer. The model is not the product, the search + reasoning loop is.
No. Queries go directly from your device to the web search API and your chosen model. Nothing is stored server-side. OpenBot has no backend, it is entirely client-side.
For the Mac app: macOS 13 or later. For the browser version: any modern browser. No API key required to try it.
Yes. OpenBot is MIT licensed and free forever. You may need an API key for the model you choose to use, but OpenBot itself costs nothing and has no paid tier.
Absolutely. Clone the repo, run npm install, point it at your own model, and you have a fully private OpenBot instance. The self-host guide is in the README.
Yes. PRs welcome. The codebase is intentionally small and readable. Add new search providers, improve the reasoning prompt, build new UI surfaces, or port it to other platforms. Check CONTRIBUTING.md to get started.
Search should be free.
Real-time web intelligence should not be locked behind a subscription. OpenBot makes it free.
In Beta
Still improving OpenBot
OpenBot is in active development. We're shipping new features, fixing bugs, and refining the experience every day. Expect rough edges — and fast progress.