Local AI
cotabby
Inline AI autocomplete in almost any text field on macOS
★ 1.0k
September 2026
AGPL-3.0
Local AI
What we checked ourselves
Not copied from the project's own blurb. These are things we opened and verified, with the date.
- 9 Sept 2026We checked that the link to the project still resolves.
- 13 Sept 2026We read the licence text itself (LICENSE). No unusual restrictions were stated.
- 2 Sept 2026We read the project's own documentation and found no sign that development has stopped.
Where this sits among the 47 tools we list in Local AI
- Works without using a terminal27 of 47
- No API key required45 of 47
- Keeps your data on your own machine34 of 47
- Commercial use confirmed as allowed32 of 47
Only 10 of the 47 meet all of the conditions above.
Counted from our own checks: every tool we list is examined against the same criteria.
What it does
Shows a grey suggestion beside the cursor as you type in mail, chat, notes or anywhere else, accepted word by word with Tab. By default it uses Apple's on-device model, so what you write stays on the machine; switching to a cloud provider changes that. Marked beta and correspondingly rough. It needs permission to read text fields, which is worth thinking through before granting. Mac only.
Summary based on the project's own description. The Japanese page has a fuller beginner guide: setup difficulty, what to prepare, and a step-by-step start.
Screenshots & visuals
Before you start
- Setup difficultySome setup needed
- Command lineNot required
- API keyNot required
- Sends data onlineNo
Judged automatically from the project's own metadata. Always confirm on the official page.
cotabby FAQ
- Is cotabby free?
- Yes. It runs on your own machine, so there is no usage-based cost either.
- Do I need to install anything or write code to use cotabby?
- You install it like a normal desktop app. No command line involved.
- Does cotabby work on a phone?
- No. It needs a computer.
- Can I use cotabby commercially?
- The licence is AGPL-3.0. Using it commercially is fine, but if you distribute something built on it you may be required to release that under the same licence. Keep it internal, or check before distributing.
How it compares
The conditions that decide whether you can actually use it, side by side.
| Tool | Command line | API key | Sends data out | Phone | Commercial use |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| cotabby (this page) | Not needed | Not needed | No | No | Yes |
| Sidekick | Not needed | Not needed | No | No | Yes |
| os-june | Not needed | Not needed | Yes | No | Yes |
| GPT4All | Not needed | Not needed | No | No | Yes |
"Sends data out" means your input is uploaded to someone's server. Pick "No" when the material cannot leave your organisation.