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Hermes Agent

A self-improving AI agent that runs in your terminal and chat apps and learns from past work.

GitHub Download v0.22.5
Stars
260k
Forks
57.2k
Licence
MIT
Language
Python
Last update
4 days ago
Type
AI model / agent

What it is

Hermes Agent is an AI assistant you run yourself, built by Nous Research. You talk to it through a terminal interface or chat apps such as Telegram, Discord, Slack, and WhatsApp, and it can use tools and remember past conversations. The README says it creates reusable skills from experience and can run scheduled tasks unattended. You can connect it to many model providers and switch between them with a command.

  • Chat with an agent from the terminal and interrupt or redirect it mid-task
  • Receive messages and send tasks through Telegram or Discord while it runs on a remote machine
  • Set up recurring jobs such as daily reports or nightly backups described in natural language
  • Delegate parallel workstreams to isolated subagents
  • Run agent commands inside Docker, SSH, or cloud sandbox backends

Great for

  • Developers who want a personal agent they can host on their own server or machine
  • People who want to reach one assistant from several chat platforms
  • Users who want scheduled, unattended tasks described in plain language
  • Teams comparing self-hosted agents with hosted model APIs

Not ideal for

  • People who want a zero-setup hosted product, since the README centers on installing and configuring it yourself
  • Users who need a guaranteed privacy posture, because the README does not describe data handling in detail and model and tool choices affect where data goes
  • Non-technical users who are uncomfortable with terminal installs and API keys
Step-by-step guide: how to use Hermes AgentInstall, first run, examples, tips and FAQs
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How to get it

  1. 1

    See the README

    You'll need: Linux, macOS, WSL2, or native Windows with PowerShell · Python 3.14 (installed by the source installer on Windows, per the README)

    Install on Linux, macOS, or WSL2

    curl -fsSL https://hermes-agent.nousresearch.com/install.sh | bash

    Install on native Windows (PowerShell)

    iex (irm https://hermes-agent.nousresearch.com/install.ps1)
  2. 2

    Run it

    • Run the install command for your operating system
    • Reload your shell with source ~/.bashrc or source ~/.zshrc
    • Run hermes to start a conversation
    • Run hermes model to choose your provider and model
    • Run hermes doctor if something does not work
  3. 3

    Get the most out of it

    • Use hermes model to switch providers without changing code, as the README describes
    • Use hermes gateway to connect the agent to Telegram, Discord, or other chat platforms
    • Configure scheduled tasks with the built-in cron scheduler for recurring reports or backups
    • Use hermes tools to enable only the tools you need
    • Consider hermes setup --portal if you want one subscription covering model, search, and other tools, per the README

Downloads

Source code (.zip)main branch · straight from GitHubRelease v0.22.5Release notes and sourceOfficial website & docshermes-agent.nousresearch.com

Strengths

  • Supports many model providers and switching between them with one command, according to the README
  • Connects to several chat platforms from a single gateway process
  • Includes a built-in scheduler and multiple execution backends

Trade-offs

  • Setup involves API keys, provider choices, and optional services, which adds complexity
  • The README's claims about self-improvement and learning are described by the project itself and are not independently verified here
  • Some features, such as the Desktop app and Android/Termux installs, have separate paths and documentation to follow

How it compares

ProjectStarsTypeLevelUpdatedBest for
hermes-agent (this)260kAI model / agentintermediate4 days agoDevelopers who want a personal agent they can host on their own server or machine
OpenHands92.5kAppintermediate4 days agoDevelopers who want coding agents running on a server while their laptop is off
9router31.8kDev toolintermediate9 days agoDevelopers who use AI coding tools and want to reduce spending
OmniRoute83.8kAppintermediate4 days agoDevelopers who use several AI coding tools and want one place to configure providers
humanizer63.8kAI model / agentbeginner9 days agoWriters who draft with an AI and want the final text to sound more natural
brigade11.4kAI model / agentintermediate4 days agoDevelopers who want to run their own multi-agent setup on a laptop or server

Stats synced from GitHub. The assessment above was drafted with AI from the project's README on 2026-10-29 and may miss recent changes — check the README before relying on a command. MIT licence: free to use, modify and distribute, including commercially, as long as you keep the copyright notice.