macOS Desktop App
Install the PraisonAI Mac desktop app and get past Gatekeeper on first launch
Install the PraisonAI Mac desktop app, understand the two Gatekeeper messages you may see, and open the app on first launch.
Download
Pick the build that matches your Mac. Open → About This Mac: “Chip” means Apple silicon, “Processor” means Intel.
| Mac | Download |
|---|---|
| Apple silicon (M1–M4) | PraisonAI-<version>-macos-apple-silicon.dmg |
| Intel | PraisonAI-<version>-macos-intel.dmg |
There is no universal build. A wrong-arch download fails when you launch it, not when you install it.
Quick Start
- First launch (ad-hoc signed, v4.7.3+)
- Drag PraisonAI to Applications.
- Right-click it → Open → Open.
- macOS remembers your choice; after that, double-click works.
- Fallback if Gatekeeper still refuses
Clear the quarantine attribute your browser added when it downloaded the file, then reopen the app:
sh xattr -dr com.apple.quarantine /Applications/PraisonAI.app
If you see “PraisonAI is damaged and can’t be opened”
Two Gatekeeper messages
The message you see tells you which fix applies.
| Message | What it means | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| “unidentified developer” / “cannot check for malicious software” | Signature is valid but untrusted | Right-click → Open → Open |
| “PraisonAI is damaged and can’t be opened” | Signature is present but invalid (v4.7.2) | Upgrade to v4.7.3 or later |
First run
The app needs a Python environment to run its engine and offers to build one: it fetches uv, installs a pinned CPython, creates a virtual environment, and installs praisonaiagents into it. Roughly 500 MB, once.
Nothing is installed system-wide. The environment and your conversations live together in ~/Library/Application Support/PraisonAI. To remove the app completely, uninstall it and delete that folder.
Questions a fresh user asks
Why does macOS block the app at all?
The build is ad-hoc signed, not signed with a Developer ID. Gatekeeper trusts only Developer ID signatures, so it shows the “unidentified developer” warning. Right-click → Open bypasses it once.
How do I open it the first time?
Right-click the app → Open → Open. macOS remembers your choice; after that, double-click works.
macOS says "damaged" — is that the normal first-launch warning?
No. “Damaged” means the signature is invalid (v4.7.2 only). “Unidentified developer” is the normal first-launch warning. Only the second is bypassable with right-click → Open. If you see “damaged”, upgrade to v4.7.3 or later.
Right-click → Open still refuses. What now?
Your browser attached a quarantine attribute. Clear it, then reopen:
xattr -dr com.apple.quarantine /Applications/PraisonAI.app