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Open Cowork

An OpenCode product layer for Desktop, Cloud, Gateway, and branded downstream deployments. Configurable, sync-aware, and engineered like a public product, not a demo.

Get started Why this exists

5 MCPs · 6 skills
Bundled capabilities
18+
Built-in chart tools
macOS · Linux
Release targets
SDK-pinned
OpenCode runtime

What it is

Open Cowork is the product layer built on top of OpenCode.

The split is deliberate and load-bearing:

  • OpenCode executes — sessions, agents, approvals, MCP calls, tool semantics, event streams.
  • Open Cowork composes — Desktop, Cloud, Gateway, UI, branding, packaging, workflows, sync, policy, and downstream config.

That boundary is what lets you embed the same battle-tested runtime that the OpenCode CLI uses, while still shipping a distinct product with your own branding, providers, skills, and workflows.

Core capabilities

  • Project & sandbox threads

    Real-filesystem project threads for code work. Private, Cowork-managed sandbox threads for reports, drafts, and artifacts — no risk of polluting your repo.

    Desktop App Guide

  • Searchable thread history

    A dedicated Threads workspace for indexed history search, metadata facets, user tags, saved filters, and suggestion-only categorization. The compact sidebar list stays focused on quick switching.

    Threads

  • Review-first workflows

    Repeatable tasks created from a Workflow Designer setup thread, then run manually, on a schedule, or from a webhook through the same OpenCode agents you already trust.

    Workflows

  • Built-in & custom MCPs

    Ships with agents, charts, clock, skills, and workflows MCPs for agent authoring, visuals, time-aware reasoning, skill-bundle management, and repeatable workflow setup. Add your own stdio or HTTP MCPs from Settings, with SSRF and shell-metacharacter policies enforced at save time.

    Skills & MCPs

  • Reusable skill bundles

    Skills are folders with a SKILL.md entry point. Use bundled ones like agent-creator, chart-creator, clock, workflow-creator, skill-creator, and autoresearch, ship your own as part of a downstream distribution, or author them from chat with skill-creator.

    Skills & MCPs

  • Sub-agent delegation

    Use @agent in chat to invoke specialist sub-agents. Custom agents compile down to native OpenCode agent definitions — no parallel execution layer, no hidden indirection.

    Architecture

  • Downstream-ready packaging

    Rebrand and reconfigure without forking. Three env vars rename the app; a config overlay ships your providers, skills, MCPs, and permissions. Same source, distinct product.

    Downstream Customization

  • Cloud and Gateway surfaces

    Cloud is the durable source of truth for shared workspaces. Gateway is the headless channel client for Telegram, Slack, email, webhooks, and future channels. Standalone Gateway remains a separate appliance mode.

    OSS Packaging and Gateway Migration

Find your path

Role Goal Start here
End user Install the app, run my first session Getting Started → Desktop App Guide
Power user Schedule recurring work, build skills Workflows → Workflow Recipes
Downstream distributor Ship a branded internal build Configuration → Downstream Customization
Contributor Land my first PR First Contribution → Architecture
Operator / release manager Cut a release, run the gates OSS Packaging and Gateway Migration → Packaging and Releases
Security reviewer Confirm the threat model holds Security Model → Telemetry and Privacy

Install

Download the latest .dmg from GitHub Releases, drag to /Applications, and launch.

The v0.x line is an unsigned public preview until signing is configured.

# Verify the checksum before opening
shasum -a 256 -c SHA256SUMS.txt

Download the .AppImage (portable) or .deb (Debian / Ubuntu).

chmod +x Open-Cowork-*.AppImage
./Open-Cowork-*.AppImage

node -v
# Expected: v22.12.0 or newer
corepack enable
corepack prepare pnpm@10.32.1 --activate
pnpm -v
pnpm install
pnpm dev          # builds shared + MCPs, then hot-reloads Electron + Vite
pnpm build        # full build (shared + MCPs + desktop)

See Getting Started for prerequisites.

Engineered like a public project

  • Security model

    Three-process Electron split, hand-audited preload bridge, fail-closed credential storage, MCP URL/stdio policies, sandboxed chart frame, SLSA provenance + SBOMs on every release.

    Read the security model

  • Releases & supply chain

    Signed macOS artifacts once signing is configured, SHA256 checksums, CycloneDX + SPDX SBOMs, SHA-pinned actions. Monthly maintenance probes paired OpenCode SDK/runtime updates against typecheck and tests.

    Packaging and Releases

  • Performance gate

    Markdown patching, sidebar virtualization, and session indexing — all with a pnpm perf:check baseline that runs in CI on every PR.

    Performance

  • Roadmap, in the open

    Focused six-phase plan, explicit non-goals, and a high bar for reintroducing deferred advanced workflow features. No surprises.

    Roadmap

What this is — and isn't

✅ This is ❌ This isn't
A polished product layer on top of OpenCode A second AI runtime
A configurable, brandable source for Desktop, Cloud, and Gateway deployments Lock-in to one hosted service
A durable control plane around OpenCode sessions, projections, workflows, and channels A new agent framework
A fork-friendly source you can rebrand without touching the code An implicit sync engine for local files, secrets, or host paths