< · [Quickstart](/en/guide/quickstart.md) · [Developer docs](/en/dev/index.md)
## Install it like any other app — but don't mistake simple for unguarded
No Docker, no VMs, no virtualization to wrestle with — download it, open it, done. "Simple" doesn't mean "unprotected":
- **Scripts run in a sandbox**: code the AI writes runs inside a Deno sandbox and can't touch anything outside it.
- **Network calls are fenced in**: a gem can only reach the hosts it asked for; your computer and your home or office network are off-limits to the AI and to gems until you list an address; the rest of the internet can be allow- or block-listed. Even if a dependency gets poisoned upstream, it can't reach out through this wall.
- **The AI never sees your keys**: Notochord's credential system only ever hands the AI a "make this request through this connection" permission — the key itself stays out of its reach and never leaves the machine.
- **Your data stays on your machine**: every conversation, document, and table is encrypted and stored locally — nothing is uploaded to any cloud.
## Pick any AI provider
OpenAI, Anthropic, Gemini — connect any cloud model, or run something local or on your own private network instead. Switch anytime. You're never locked into one vendor.
## Turn repeat work into a process (SOP)
Write down a workflow you do often as an SOP, and run it with one click from then on — no re-explaining it to the AI every time. Bigger jobs can be split across multiple AI agents working together, running in the background, without you having to watch.
## Build it yourself, or build it with the AI's help
Notochord exposes a rich set of building blocks — tools, skills, SOPs, and agents are all things you can build yourself. Never written code? The built-in AI assistant can build it with you.
## The longer you use it, the better it knows you
A built-in personal knowledge base accumulates how you work and what you prefer, so the AI keeps getting more useful the longer you use it.
## Gem Store
Anyone can build and publish their own tools, skills, and agents for others to use. Paid listings and revenue sharing are coming, so independent creators can turn their know-how into income.
## Open source, free for anyone
Notochord will be released as open source under the MIT license — the code will be open to public scrutiny, with no limits on personal or commercial use.
## Why "Notochord"
A notochord is the rod of cells that let early invertebrates — creatures getting by on little more than a claw and a few reflexes — evolve into something new: a spine, the structure a more complex nervous system and finer motor control could organize around, the first step toward becoming a vertebrate. That's the idea behind the name: building the structure that lets AI agents grow from simple reflexes into coordinated, autonomous work.
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