PraisonAI Desktop

PraisonAI Desktop is a native macOS app that runs your PraisonAI agents locally with streaming chat, tool calls, approvals, MCP servers, and per-conversation memory — no browser required.

from praisonaiagents import Agent

agent = Agent(
    name="Assistant",
    instructions="You are a helpful assistant.",
)
# Talk to this agent from the PraisonAI Desktop app —
# it picks up your local venv automatically.
agent.start("Summarize this file")

The app is a Tauri (Rust) shell that supervises a small Python engine on loopback. Chat text streams straight from that engine into the webview over 127.0.0.1 — nothing leaves your machine unless the model itself does.

Quick Start

Install a venv with praisonaiagents

The app looks for a local virtual environment inside the checkout. Create one and install the SDK:

cd src/praisonai-agents
python3 -m venv .venv
.venv/bin/pip install praisonaiagents

Build the app from source

The DMG target is defined in src-tauri/tauri.conf.json (productName: "PraisonAI", identifier ai.praison.desktop, macOS 10.15+).

cd src/praisonai-desktop
cargo tauri build

The PR ships no README — confirm the exact build command with the maintainer before publishing.

Launch and watch the startup pill

On first launch a status pill reports the engine’s state:

Pill	Meaning
`starting engine`	The shell is spawning Python
`engine :PORT`	The engine is listening and healthy
`engine failed`	Startup failed — the tail of the log is shown

How It Works

The Rust shell picks a Python interpreter, proves it owns its own site-packages, spawns the engine, then confirms the announced port with a /health probe before handing it to the webview. Where the app looks for the venv, in order (src-tauri/src/main.rs):

Order	Path (relative to checkout)
1	`src/praisonai-agents/.venv`
2	`src/praisonai-agents/venv`
3	`venv`

The first interpreter whose venv owns its own site-packages wins. A system Python or a mismatched venv is refused rather than guessed at.

When To Use It

Choose	When
Desktop App	You want a local, native chat window with approvals and per-conversation history
Web UI	You need a shareable browser experience
Python script	You are automating agents or embedding them in code

Best Practices

Keep the venv beside the checkout

The shell resolves the interpreter from fixed paths inside the checkout. Put your .venv at src/praisonai-agents/.venv so the app finds it without configuration.

Install praisonaiagents into that venv

A missing dependency surfaces as engine failed: missing dependency. Install praisonaiagents into the same venv the app resolves.

Read the pill, not the exit code

Every failure attaches the tail of the engine’s own output. Read the pill and the log viewer instead of guessing from a bare exit code.

Chat & Streaming

Messages, streaming events, tool cards, and keyboard shortcuts

Approvals & Safety

ask / smart / never modes and the per-call approval flow

Settings Reference

Every field in the settings registry

Engine & Diagnostics

Startup states, the log viewer, and common failure modes

Getting Started

Install

Core Concepts

Guides

Features

Models

Databases

Observability

Memory

Telemetry & Analytics

Knowledge

RAG

Persistence

Tools

Other Features

Developers

Configuration

Best Practices

Getting Started (No Code)

Quick Start

How It Works

When To Use It

Best Practices

Chat & Streaming

Approvals & Safety

Settings Reference

Engine & Diagnostics

​Quick Start

​How It Works

​When To Use It

​Best Practices

​Related

Chat & Streaming

Approvals & Safety

Settings Reference

Engine & Diagnostics

Quick Start

How It Works

When To Use It

Best Practices

Related