atarehAI Workflow · APR 7, 2026
How to install Clicky: an AI buddy that lives in your Mac menu bar
Clicky is a free open-source macOS app that can see your screen, hear your voice, and talk back — like having a teacher next to you. Here's how to set it up from scratch, even if you've never used a terminal.
What is Clicky?
Clicky is a free macOS app by @FarzaTV that puts an AI buddy in your menu bar. Hold a hotkey, talk to it, and it can see your screen, hear your voice, talk back to you, and even point at things on your screen with an animated cursor.
Think of it like having a teacher sitting next to you who can see exactly what you're looking at and walk you through it.
It runs entirely on your Mac — no account to create, no subscription. You can either download the pre-built app or build it yourself from the open-source code.
Download Clicky
The easiest way to get Clicky. Download the app, open it, and you're done.
Go to clicky.so
Head to clicky.so and download the app. It works on both Apple Silicon and Intel Macs running macOS 14 or later.
Open it
Open the downloaded file. Clicky will appear as a small icon in your menu bar (top right of your screen, near the clock). That's it — skip ahead to Grant permissions.
Open-source setup (build it yourself)
Clicky is fully open-source. If you want to build from source, customize it, or just see how it works — there are two ways to do it.
Option A — Let Claude Code do it
If you have Claude Code installed, paste this prompt and it'll handle the entire setup for you:
Hi Claude.
Clone https://github.com/farzaa/clicky.git into my current directory.
Then read the CLAUDE.md. I want to get Clicky running locally on my Mac.
Help me set up everything — the Cloudflare Worker with my own API keys,
the proxy URLs, and getting it building in Xcode. Walk me through it.Option B — Manual setup (step by step)
Don't have Claude Code? No problem. Here's what you need and how to do it yourself.
Before you start
- Anthropic (Claude) — the brain
- AssemblyAI — speech-to-text (turns your voice into text)
- ElevenLabs — text-to-speech (gives Clicky a voice)
Part A — Set up the Cloudflare Worker (your API proxy)
Clicky doesn't store your API keys in the app itself. Instead, it talks to a tiny server you own on Cloudflare (free) that holds the keys. This is safer — your keys never leave your server.
Download the Clicky code
Open Terminal (search “Terminal” in Spotlight) and paste:
git clone https://github.com/farzaa/clicky.git
cd clickyInstall the worker dependencies
cd worker
npm installAdd your API keys
Run each of these one at a time. It'll ask you to paste your key — paste it and press Enter:
npx wrangler secret put ANTHROPIC_API_KEY
npx wrangler secret put ASSEMBLYAI_API_KEY
npx wrangler secret put ELEVENLABS_API_KEYWrangler may ask you to log into Cloudflare the first time. Follow the prompts — it'll open your browser.
Deploy the worker
npx wrangler deployWhen it finishes, it'll print a URL that looks something like:https://clicky-proxy.your-name.workers.dev
Copy this URL. You'll need it in the next section.
Part B — Build and run the app in Xcode
Update the app with your worker URL
Go back to the main clicky folder and search for the placeholder URL:
cd ..
grep -r "clicky-proxy" leanring-buddy/This will show you every file that references the default worker URL. Open each file in a text editor and replace clicky-proxy with the URL you copied from Step 4.
Yes, the folder is called “leanring-buddy” with a typo. That's intentional — don't rename it.
Open the project in Xcode
open leanring-buddy.xcodeprojXcode will open with the project loaded.
Set your signing team
In Xcode, click on leanring-buddy in the left sidebar, then go to Signing & Capabilities. Under “Team,” select your Apple ID. If you don't have one set up, Xcode will walk you through adding it (it's free — you don't need a paid developer account).
Build and run
Press Cmd + R or click the play button in the top left of Xcode. It'll compile and launch. The app will appear as a small icon in your menu bar (top right of your screen, near the clock).
Grant permissions
When Clicky runs for the first time, macOS will ask for a few permissions. Say yes to all of them:
So it can hear you when you hold the hotkey
So it can take a screenshot to see what you're looking at
So the keyboard shortcut works even when you're in another app
If you accidentally denied one, go to System Settings > Privacy & Security and toggle it on manually.
How to use it
Once it's running, using Clicky is dead simple:
That's it. Clicky takes a screenshot of your screen, transcribes what you said, sends both to Claude, and reads the response back to you. It can even point at things on your screen with a little blue cursor while it explains.
Troubleshooting
- Wrangler asks me to log in: That's normal. It'll open Cloudflare in your browser — sign in and come back to Terminal.
- Xcode says “No signing team”: Click the dropdown under Signing & Capabilities, add your Apple ID, and select it.
- Nothing happens when I hold Control + Option: Check System Settings > Privacy & Security > Accessibility and make sure the app is toggled on.
- Clicky can't hear me: Check System Settings > Privacy & Security > Microphone.
- I see an error about “clicky-proxy”: You missed replacing the URL in Step 5. Run the
grepcommand again and update any files you missed.
Written by
@atareh
AI architect & creator. Writing, designing, and producing in AI and tech. Previously head of product at a healthtech SaaS; background in molecular science. Founded gogray.today in 2017.
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