What is LobsterAI used for?

LobsterAI is an open-source desktop AI agent from NetEase Youdao that works on your local files and apps, and takes commands from phone chat apps. It is a good fit for office task automation on the desktop, data analysis and slide creation by agent, and controlling a desktop agent from chat apps.

Is LobsterAI open source?

Yes. LobsterAI is open source under the MIT licence. Its source code is on GitHub at netease-youdao/LobsterAI and is written mainly in TypeScript.

Yes. LobsterAI is open source, so the software itself is free to use.

Can I self-host LobsterAI?

Yes. LobsterAI can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure; there is no official hosted version.

What is LobsterAI an alternative to?

LobsterAI is an open-source alternative to Claude Cowork, Manus and Genspark. Other open-source alternatives to Claude Cowork include Goose, AionUi and Suna.

Is LobsterAI actively maintained?

Yes. The most recent commit to LobsterAI was on 1 October 2026, and the latest release is 2026.9.23, published on 23 September 2026. The project has 6.1k stars on GitHub.

LobsterAI: open-source alternative to Claude Cowork, Manus

About LobsterAI

LobsterAI is a desktop AI agent built by NetEase Youdao that can work in your real computing environment, including local files, shell commands, browser workflows, office documents, spreadsheets, slides, scheduled jobs and project workspaces. It is aimed at office-style tasks such as data analysis, slide and document creation, video work and web research.

The app is organized around Cowork, its product and session layer, which keeps local persistence, permissions, interface state, artifacts, agents, memory and instant-messaging bindings. OpenClaw is the runtime and gateway beneath it that actually executes agent tasks. Users can send commands from their phone through WeChat, Feishu, DingTalk or Telegram, and MCP is among its repository topics.

LobsterAI is built with Electron, React and TypeScript, and it is licensed under MIT. It runs as a desktop application on your own computer rather than as a hosted service. It suits users who want an agent with real local access and mobile messaging control.

Key features

Desktop agent with local file and terminal access
Cowork sessions for long-running tasks
Command input via WeChat, Feishu and DingTalk
Telegram control from your phone
Document, spreadsheet and slide generation
OpenClaw runtime for agent execution

Good fit for

→Office task automation on the desktop
→Data analysis and slide creation by agent
→Controlling a desktop agent from chat apps

Built with: TypeScript; Electron; React
Tags: ai-agent; desktop-app; automation; openclaw; electron; mcp; office-automation

LobsterAI: questions and answers

What is LobsterAI used for?: LobsterAI is an open-source desktop AI agent from NetEase Youdao that works on your local files and apps, and takes commands from phone chat apps. It is a good fit for office task automation on the desktop, data analysis and slide creation by agent, and controlling a desktop agent from chat apps.
Is LobsterAI open source?: Yes. LobsterAI is open source under the MIT licence. Its source code is on GitHub at netease-youdao/LobsterAI and is written mainly in TypeScript.
Is LobsterAI free?: Yes. LobsterAI is open source, so the software itself is free to use.
Can I self-host LobsterAI?: Yes. LobsterAI can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure; there is no official hosted version.
What is LobsterAI an alternative to?: LobsterAI is an open-source alternative to Claude Cowork, Manus and Genspark. Other open-source alternatives to Claude Cowork include Goose, AionUi and Suna.
Is LobsterAI actively maintained?: Yes. The most recent commit to LobsterAI was on 1 October 2026, and the latest release is 2026.9.23, published on 23 September 2026. The project has 6.1k stars on GitHub.