01What Is the Hermes Desktop App and How It Works

The Hermes desktop app is a new free desktop application that helps you manage your Hermes AI agents from one simple place. Instead of juggling terminal commands or web interfaces, you get a visual dashboard where you can chat, add tools, and control everything about your agents.

The app works by connecting to your Hermes setup and showing all your agents, sessions, models, skills, and memory in easy-to-use panels. You can switch between providers like OpenAI and others right in the chat window, similar to how you would in ChatGPT. The app also syncs with your existing Hermes profiles, so you can manage multiple agents as a team.

02Key Features of the Hermes Desktop App

The desktop app brings many useful features together. Here are the main ones from the episode:

  • Chat interface – Talk to your Hermes agents directly, just like ChatGPT, and switch between LLM providers quickly.
  • Profile management – Create and switch between different Hermes agents, each with its own isolated profile.
  • Tool integration – Add tools like browser, web search, terminal (CLI), text-to-speech, and more with just a few clicks.
  • Messaging platform connections – Connect to Telegram, Discord, and email to let your agents operate on those channels.
  • Local and custom endpoints – Add your own local models or custom endpoints easily, so you can run AI for free if you have the hardware.
  • Office view (Claw3D) – Install Claw3D to see your AI agents in a virtual office space.
  • Migrate from OpenClaw – A built-in option to move your existing OpenClaw setup into Hermes with one click.

These features make the app a central hub for all your AI agent management.

03How to Set Up the Hermes Desktop App

Setting up the Hermes desktop app is straightforward, even for non-technical users. Here are the steps from the episode:

  1. Download and install the Hermes desktop app (it's free).
  2. Make sure you have the prerequisites ready (like having Hermes installed already).
  3. Open the app and let Hermes guide you through the setup – you can ask it to configure things for you.
  4. Run any command it gives you in your terminal (for example, on a Mac). If you get an error, paste it back into Hermes and ask it to fix it.
  5. Choose your profile or create a new one. You can have multiple profiles for different agents.
  6. Once set up, you can start chatting with your agents right away.

If you have an OpenClaw installation, you can use the 'Migrate to Hermes' option in settings to transfer everything automatically.

04How to Use the App to Manage Agents and Tools

After setup, you can start using the app for daily tasks. In the chat section, you can talk to your Hermes agents, select different model providers, and see responses in real time. You can also manage sessions across all channels (Telegram, CLI, web UI) from one place, which is great if you use multiple messaging platforms.

In the tools section, you can enable or add tools like web search, browser automation (via Browser Base), text-to-speech, and more. The memory section lets you choose memory providers (like Honcho) and manage user and agent memory. You can edit the persona and personality of Hermes, and browse or install skills from a library.

The schedules section shows all your scheduled tasks, and you can edit them there. For more control, you can switch between local and remote modes – remote connects to a cloud Hermes, while local uses your own machine. You can also export and import your setup, which is useful if something breaks after an update.

05Performance and Comparisons: Hermes vs OpenClaw vs CloudCode

In the episode, Julian tested the app and found it connected beautifully. He also compared Hermes to OpenClaw and CloudCode. He found that OpenClaw is much buggier and less reliable – it breaks often, especially after new updates.

Hermes, on the other hand, is smoother and more reliable. He showed usage charts on OpenRouter: Hermes is trending up, while OpenClaw's usage declines after each buggy release.

CloudCode, though closed-source, is extremely reliable – Julian says it works every time for him, so he uses it for day-to-day workflows. The trade-off is that Hermes gives you more customization and access to an open-source community, while CloudCode has no such community and is more limited in customization.

For non-technical users, the desktop app makes Hermes much easier to use than the terminal UI. You can see all your settings, tools, and agents in one visual place, which is a big advantage.

06Tips, Limits, and Mistakes to Avoid

Here are some practical tips from the episode:

  • Use the migrate feature – If you come from OpenClaw, use the built-in migration to save time and avoid manual setup.
  • Export your setup – Regularly export your config; if an update breaks something, you can import it back to an older version.
  • Watch API costs – Using models like Opus can get expensive, so monitor your API usage.
  • Steer mode for long workflows – If your agent goes off track, you can use steer mode (available in OpenCore) to get it back on the right path.

One limitation is that Hermes can be more technical than CloudCode and may break sometimes, but the desktop app reduces that barrier. Also, the terminal UI is still there for developers who prefer it, but the desktop app is better for non-technical users. You can install both Hermes and OpenClaw to try them, but be ready for OpenClaw's bugs.

07Who Should Use the Hermes Desktop App and Why It Matters

The Hermes desktop app is ideal for anyone who wants to use AI agents without being a developer. It's for the 99% of people who find terminal UIs difficult. The app gives you a friendly interface to manage everything – agents, tools, memory, skills, and models – all in one place.

It also matters because it's free and open-source, so you can experiment and learn without cost. Julian recommends trying new tools like this to see what works for you. If you want deeper training, he mentions his community at AIProfitBoarding.com, which offers courses and coaching calls.

Overall, the desktop app makes Hermes more accessible, which could help more people benefit from AI agents in their daily workflows.