Installation

System Requirements

• macOS 10.15 (Catalina) or later
• Git installed (comes pre-installed on macOS)
• An Anthropic API key for Claude access

Download

Download the latest version of ChatML from the GitHub Releases page.

1. Download the .dmg file for your Mac (Apple Silicon or Intel)
2. Open the .dmg file
3. Drag ChatML to your Applications folder
4. Launch ChatML from Applications

First Launch

On first launch, macOS may show a security prompt since ChatML is distributed outside the App Store:

1. If you see "ChatML can't be opened", go to System Settings > Privacy & Security
2. Scroll down and click Open Anyway next to the ChatML message
3. Click Open in the confirmation dialog

ChatML will start the onboarding wizard to walk you through initial setup.

Auto-Updates

ChatML checks for updates automatically. When a new version is available:

1. A notification appears in the app
2. Click to download and install the update
3. Restart ChatML to apply the update

What Gets Installed

ChatML is a self-contained application that includes:

• Frontend — Next.js-based UI
• Backend — Go sidecar for API, git operations, and data management
• Agent Runner — Node.js process that manages Claude AI sessions
• SQLite database — Local data stored at ~/Library/Application Support/ChatML/state/chatml.db
• Session worktrees — Created at ~/Library/Application Support/ChatML/workspaces/ (configurable)

Uninstalling

To uninstall ChatML:

1. Quit ChatML
2. Delete ChatML.app from your Applications folder
3. Optionally, remove data: rm -rf ~/Library/Application\ Support/ChatML