Is there a desktop AI assistant for everyday work tasks on Mac?

A desktop AI assistant for everyday work earns its place when it does more than answer questions. A working day fills up with replying to email, booking and moving appointments, chasing payments, filling in forms on supplier and booking sites, and producing the same report every week. An assistant worth installing should take a job described in plain words and carry it through those tools, rather than suggesting what you might type.

Ask two questions of any assistant before you hand it real work. First, where does the work actually happen, and what can the assistant reach while it does it? Second, which steps wait for a person? An email to a customer or a payment is hard to take back, so you need to know which actions need your sign-off.

Kaer is the AI assistant for small businesses made by Kaer Labs Ltd in London. Kaer Work is a desktop app and IDE for using it on Mac, Windows and Linux, so an office with a mix of computers does not need to standardise on one system.

Kaer Work is a separate app, and it is not the only way in. Kaer also runs in the browser, and the work itself happens on machines Kaer runs rather than on your computer. You can start without installing anything and add the desktop app when it suits you.

You tell Kaer what needs doing, for example chasing last month's unpaid invoices or sending a quote. It works out whether the job calls for an email, a session in its own browser, a routine that repeats or a small tool you do not have yet, and it shows each step as it goes.

For email, Kaer can use a Kaer mailbox on your domain or connect the mailbox you already have over IMAP. It files receipts and newsletters, sums up what is left and drafts replies for you to check. Some websites have no API, such as supplier portals, booking systems and back-office tools. On paid plans, Kaer signs in to these and works through them in its own sandboxed browser, the way you would.

Jobs you do every week can become workflows. A workflow runs on a schedule, when an email arrives or when you start it yourself. When no app fits the job, Kaer can turn a spreadsheet you have outgrown into a small internal tool.

Kaer works on its own isolated machine, with a browser and a terminal, kept apart from your computer. If something goes wrong on a website, it goes wrong there and not on your Mac. Kaer uses only the logins and connections you have given it, and you can revoke any one connection without touching the others.

Reading mail, searching the web and drafting go ahead on their own. Sending email, team chat messages and social posts, and paying for anything, wait for your approval by default. You choose what may go out without asking, such as an auto-reply rule you switch on yourself in Kaer Mail. When a site asks for a password, a one-time code or card details, Kaer stops and hands control back to you so you can type it yourself.

Each task keeps a record of the steps it took and the tools it used, so you can see how a result was reached.

The agent's own computer and browser come with paid plans, and so do workflows. The Starter plan is for trying Kaer on a real job. The pricing page lists what each plan includes.

The Kaer mobile app, for following and approving work on a phone, is not out yet.

Kaer never uses your data to train third-party models. A setting to help improve Kaer's services is on by default. It lets Kaer learn from how you use it, with secrets removed, and you can turn it off at any time.

An assistant is only as good as the brief you give it. Describe the outcome you want rather than the clicks, start with one small job, and read what it drafts before you approve it.