Axo

A free Mac app by Hassan Arshad

Axo

A cute pixel buddy in your MacBook notch that helps you sit well and take breaks.

Download for Mac See the code
  • Free and open source
  • macOS 14 Sonoma or newer
  • No account

Or install with Homebrew:

brew install --cask hassanarshad123/axo/axo
Pixel art of a laptop on a desk at sunset. Axo, a pink axolotl, peeks out of the notch at the top of the screen.

It lives in your notch

Small and quiet most of the time. It opens only when it has something to say, then gets out of the way. On a Mac with no notch, it sits at the top center of the screen.

Axo opens from the notch to say: sit tall, stand up, rest your eyes, drink water.

What Axo does

Kind reminders at the right time. Every time below can be changed, and you can add your own reminders.

Posture

Sit straight for 5 seconds once. Then Axo checks your head and shoulders with the camera for about 3 seconds a minute, on your Mac. If you slouch twice in a row, it tells you gently. Supported AirPods can help too.

Breaks and stretches

Stand up every 30 minutes and stretch every hour. Pick a gentle note in the notch or a full-screen break with a countdown. Axo does each stretch with you. Even a locked break lets you out: hold Esc for 3 seconds.

Eye rest

The 20-20-20 rule, without having to remember it. Every 20 minutes, look at something 20 feet (6 meters) away for 20 seconds.

Water

A nudge to drink water every hour. This one counts real time, so it keeps going while you are away from the Mac.

Calm voice coach

A soft voice, like a yoga teacher, guides your stretches and breaths. The lines ship inside the app, so they work offline. Turn the voice off any time.

Your buddy grows

Good posture checks and finished breaks earn points. Your buddy levels up and grows through 5 forms. You also get a daily score, streaks and weekly charts.

Waits for you

Reminders wait when you step away, and during calls in Zoom, Meet, Teams or FaceTime. Axo only asks macOS if a microphone is in use. It never listens.

Private by design

No account. Camera frames are checked on your Mac and dropped. Your history and settings stay on your Mac. How privacy works

Look after yourself, and your buddy grows up

Every buddy has 5 forms. Here is Axo.

  1. Baby
  2. Normal
  3. Evolved
  4. Champion
  5. Legend

Pick your buddy

16 buddies, plus secret buddies that open with a code. Axo is the default. Give yours a name and change its color.

  • A pink axolotl
    AxoDefault
  • A teal slime
    Goo
  • An orange and white cat
    Neko
  • A small gray robot with green eyes
    Bit
  • A green bean with a sprout
    Sprout
  • A white cloud
    Nubo
  • A green turtle
    Shelly
  • A navy and white penguin
    Pengu
  • A brown sloth
    Slo
  • A lilac owl
    Hoot
  • A pink dumpling with a leaf
    Mochi
  • A green frog
    Kero
  • A white bunny
    Usa
  • A tiny retro computer with a face
    Moni
  • An orange hamster
    Hammy
  • A young man with black hair and glasses
    Hassan
Axo holds a camera next to a laptop. The laptop screen shows a photo, a lock and a shield.

Private by design

  • Camera frames stay on your Mac. Each frame is checked in memory and dropped. The camera runs about 3 seconds a minute, only while you are at the Mac.
  • No account, no cloud. Your history and settings stay on your Mac.
  • Progress photos are off by default. If you turn them on, they stay on your Mac and are deleted after 30 days.
  • It never listens. To wait during calls, Axo only asks macOS if a microphone is in use.
  • Two network calls. An update check, and anonymous usage counts that you can turn off in Settings.
  • This website has no cookies, no analytics and no trackers.
Read the privacy notice

Questions

Is it free?

Yes. Axo is free, with no account and no payments. The code is open source under the MIT license, on GitHub.

Does the camera record me?

No. Axo checks each camera frame in memory on your Mac to find your head and shoulders, then drops it. Frames are not saved and not sent anywhere.

The camera runs about 3 seconds a minute, only while you are at the Mac. On a built-in camera, the green light shows each check. You can turn the camera off in Settings and still get reminders.

The one exception is progress photos. They are off unless you turn them on, and they stay on your Mac.

Which Macs does it work on?

Macs with macOS 14 Sonoma or newer. On a MacBook with a notch, Axo lives in the notch. On other Macs and on external displays, it shows the same black island at the top center of the screen.

Posture checks need a camera or supported AirPods. Reminders work without either.

Why does the installer say "Zensbot LLC"?

macOS shows the name of the Apple developer account that signed an app. Axo is signed with the Apple Developer ID of Zensbot LLC, the company where Hassan Arshad is CEO. Axo itself is made and branded by Hassan Arshad.

How do I uninstall it?

If you turned on "Open at login", turn it off in Axo's Settings first. Then click Axo in the menu bar, choose Quit, and drag Axo from your Applications folder to the Trash.

To remove its data too, delete these:

  • ~/Library/Application Support/Axo (app data and progress photos)
  • ~/Library/Preferences/com.hassanarshad.axo.plist (settings)
  • ~/Library/Caches/com.hassanarshad.axo

If you installed with Homebrew, brew uninstall --zap --cask axo removes the app and all of these.