OpenMausBot landed about a day after Grok Bot with almost the same interface — but open source, free, and running on subscriptions you already pay for. Here’s where each one wins after testing both side by side.
Short answer
- Same shape: a Telegram-style sidebar where every contact is an AI agent.
- OpenMausBot wins on cost, model choice per bot, and keeping your data on your machine.
- Grok Bot wins on polish, platform coverage and agents talking to each other.
- Computer use is slow on both — the app connections are the useful part.
Same shape, different deal
Grok Bot went into early beta and OpenMausBot — an open-source version of the same idea — landed within about a day of it. Put them side by side and they look remarkably similar: a Telegram-style sidebar where every contact is an AI agent with its own personality, job and connected apps.
The difference isn’t the interface. It’s who owns it, what it costs, and what you’re allowed to change.
| OpenMausBot | Grok Bot | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free | $200 |
| Licence | Open source | Closed, xAI |
| Access | Download it now | Beta, waitlist, top-tier subs |
| Models | Pick per bot — Fable 5, Opus 5, Sonnet 5, Haiku, Codex, Grok 4.5 | Locked to their stack |
| Subscriptions | Uses ones you already have | Needs its own |
| Data | Local-first — conversations and keys on your Mac | Their cloud |
| Polish | Rough in places | Genuinely smooth |
| Agent-to-agent | Didn’t work in my test | Works |
| Platforms | Mac now; Windows and Linux coming | Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone |
Where OpenMausBot wins
You choose the brain
This is the biggest one. Grok Bot doesn’t let you change the model. OpenMausBot gives you a model picker for every single bot.
That matters because different jobs need different brains. Some models are better at writing, some at research, some are faster and cheaper to run. Your writing bot runs on the model that writes well, your research bot runs on something else. You’re building a team rather than asking one assistant to do everything.
It uses what you already pay for
No new accounts, no extra plans. If you use Claude it uses your Claude; if you use Codex it uses your Codex. It works with Grok too.
And a detail worth knowing if you’ve compared this to Hermes: you can’t use Claude with Hermes through the CLI — you need an API. With OpenMausBot you can use Claude directly. That’s a genuine middle ground.
It inherits your existing setup
When I set up an SEO content researcher bot, it already had my keyword research skill and could pull live Google Search Console data across my sites. I didn’t set up any APIs — it was already there, because it’s using a CLI I’d already configured.
It picked up my Obsidian vault on its own for the same reason: Claude was already trained on using it, so that’s the first place it looked.
Your data stays put
It’s local-first. One small server on your Mac manages the agent processes, and your conversations, keys and event logs live in a folder on your computer.
Be clear about the limit though: the models are still cloud models. Claude, Codex and Grok all send data to the cloud. This is local storage, not local inference.
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Where Grok Bot wins
- Smoothness. It’s a polished product from a company. OpenMausBot is an open-source project days old, and the question formatting is messy in places.
- Agent-to-agent. I tried getting one OpenMausBot agent to talk to another and it didn’t understand what I was asking. Grok Bot handles this properly.
- Platform coverage. Grok Bot is on Mac, Windows, Linux and iPhone today. OpenMausBot is Mac, with the rest coming.
- Onboarding. Grok Bot walks you through what to focus on first. OpenMausBot expects you to have a CLI already configured.
If you want the perfect version, it’s Grok Bot. The catch is that it’s in beta with a waitlist, it costs $200, and my free trial ran out of tokens in about 20 minutes.
What both get right
Two features matter more than the branding on either.
Approval before action. When a bot wants to run a command, edit a file or do something risky, a card pops up and you allow or deny — like approving something on your phone. There’s a permission system underneath that turns every risky action into a decision you make, so the bot never goes rogue on your files.
A computer per agent. Each bot can get a cloud desktop — a real Linux machine it controls — with a live preview of the screen while it works. You can open the desktop and take it over in your browser, or point the bot at your own Mac instead. OpenMausBot ships this using cloud desktop sandboxes and computer-use technology from a project called CUA.
Honest note on computer use: it’s slow on both. I watched Grok Bot get stuck trying to open Google and type “hello”. That’s the level computer use is at across every agent I’ve tested — impressive to watch, not yet something to build a workflow on. The app connections are the genuinely useful part.
Which should you use?
| Use OpenMausBot if | Use Grok Bot if |
|---|---|
| You want it free | $200 isn’t a concern |
| You want to pick a model per bot | You want maximum polish |
| You already pay for Claude, Codex or Grok | You want it on iPhone today |
| You want your data on your own machine | You want agents talking to each other |
| You’re happy with an early open-source project | You want guided onboarding |
For most people reading this, the answer is OpenMausBot — not because it’s better, but because most people can’t get into Grok Bot anyway.
If you want the wider comparison, see Grok Bot vs Hermes and the free alternative roundup.
The shape is the real story
Version one of AI was one assistant in one chat box. Version two looks like this: a team of agents, each with a name, a job, a model, connected apps and a computer.
Grok Bot is built on that shape. OpenMausBot is built on that shape. It’s the same direction an agent OS is built on, and it’s why this launch matters more than either app does.
It also breaks the technical barrier in a way Hermes and OpenClaw never quite did. This is WhatsApp for AI agents. How do you create an agent? Click the plus sign. How do you build the workflow? Type what you want. Compare that to hunting through old Claude conversations trying to find a workflow you set up three weeks ago.
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FAQ
OpenMausBot vs Grok Bot — which is better?
Grok Bot is smoother and more complete. OpenMausBot is free, open source, lets you pick a model per bot, and runs on subscriptions you already have. For most people the second matters more.
What is OpenMausBot?
A free, open-source take on Grok Bot built by Milind Soni, giving you a sidebar of AI agents that plug into the AI tools you’re already logged into.
Can Grok Bot change models?
No. That’s one of the clearest wins for OpenMausBot, which gives you a model picker on every bot.
Do both give agents their own computer?
Yes — a cloud desktop with a live screen preview. It’s slow on both, so treat it as a preview of where things are heading rather than a daily tool.
Is OpenMausBot private?
Local-first, not local. Your conversations, keys and logs stay on your Mac, but the models are still cloud models.
Do agents talk to each other?
On Grok Bot, yes. On OpenMausBot it didn’t work when I tested it — likely to be fixed, but not there yet.
How many apps can I connect?
OpenMausBot has a one-click marketplace built on Composio with 500+ apps including Gmail, Slack, Notion and Linear. Connect once and every bot can use it.
Which platforms do they run on?
Grok Bot is on Mac, Windows, Linux and iPhone. OpenMausBot is Mac today, with Windows, Linux and Ubuntu coming.
The bottom line
On OpenMausBot vs Grok Bot, Grok Bot is the better product and OpenMausBot is the better deal — free, open source, running on subscriptions you already pay for, with a model picker Grok Bot simply doesn’t offer. Neither has computer use working properly yet. Take the shape seriously, and don’t pay $200 for a beta you can’t get into.
About Julian Goldie
I run Goldie Agency, a 7-figure SEO agency, and teach this daily on a 400K+ subscriber YouTube channel. 240+ client projects on Upwork at a 100% job-success score, 10+ years through every major Google update. My systems are in the AI Profit Boardroom; my link building book is free here.