Install Locus
Requirements
- Apple Silicon Mac running macOS 14 or later.
- To chat or run work, one model source: local Ollama with a downloaded model, an eligible ChatGPT plan, or a supported API account. Claude plan access is a separate preview. Companion setup and bundled characters work without a model account.
The packaged app includes its Python agent runtime. You do not need a separate Python installation, Homebrew, Rust, Codex CLI, or a running ChatGPT or Codex app. Ollama and model weights are separate installations.
Install and open
- Download Locus 4.1.0, the Developer ID signed and notarized, wallet-free release. See the release notes.
- Unzip it and move Locus.app to Applications.
- Open Locus and set up your companion, or choose Not now. Reopen the guided paths through Help → Getting Started. The companion guide describes the updated sidebar, panel, and menu-bar controls in 4.1.
- Choose local Ollama or connect your account under Settings → Models & Providers.
- Choose a workspace and review your permission mode before sending a request.
New settings start in Dark appearance. Change it in Settings → Appearance. Upgrading keeps an appearance choice you have already saved.
ChatGPT-plan components
ChatGPT-plan access uses pinned Codex helpers. Direct release builds normally offer them as a separate component download when you add that account. Ollama and API-key accounts do not need the component. Downloaded components must pass checksum and SparkTales code-signature checks before installation or execution. A failed check preserves the previous installation.
Debug builds bundle the helpers; direct builds can also explicitly bundle them. Use Settings → Updates for the component's available controls.
Update from an older installation
If you use 2.6.0 or earlier, install the verified download above once. Those installations cannot fetch this change automatically. Unzip the download and replace Locus in Applications.
From 2.7 onward, direct-download Locus checks for updates daily, can download them in the background, and installs a downloaded update when you quit. Use Check for Updates in the sidebar gear menu or open Settings → Updates to check manually or change the automatic-check and download preferences. Existing opt-outs stay in effect. macOS may ask for administrator approval if the installation location requires it.
Installing Locus preserves existing Locus chats, accounts, settings, and browser data. Wallet files and Keychain entries are left untouched and are not automatically imported. Earlier wallet-era installations continue using their unchanged update feed; LocusX is a separate edition.
Managed account components update separately from the application.
Locus and LocusX
| Edition | Wallet functionality | App data |
|---|---|---|
| Locus | Excluded | Keeps the existing Locus profile |
| LocusX | Separate optional wallet implementation | Independent chats, accounts, settings, and browser profile |
The public download above is standard Locus. LocusX remains a separate edition with its own profile and manual distribution. Locus ships through the notarized direct download; the unused Mac App Store build target was removed in 3.3. Computer Control is optional, and the built-in browser is available in the desktop workspace.
Claude plan and independent runtimes
Claude plan uses its own verified managed component in direct release builds. It is separate from the ChatGPT component and API-key accounts; its authentication and distribution approval remain preview limitations. See Hosted & Custom Models.
Independent background execution is opt-in under Settings → Runtimes, requires direct-download wallet-free Locus, and keeps the Mac's login and awake requirements. Remote packages are candidate artifacts with separate live-host release gates. Follow SSH & Remote Runtimes before deploying.
Task-history upgrades preserve prior records. Older records without verification remain unverified; downgrading to an older writable database schema requires a pre-upgrade data copy.