For people who build with AI
Wait together.
Play a quick game with someone near you while you both wait for AI to finish its task. That's the whole idea.
- Claude Code
- Codex
How it works
Your AI gets to work.
Ask Claude Code or Codex for something big. Idle notices it has started.
A bar drops down.
"Play a game while you wait." Ignore it, or open it. It never takes your keyboard.
Someone nearby plays against you.
Idle finds a builder on your network, in seconds. Rock paper scissors, chess, tic-tac-toe, blackjack.
Nearby, automatically
Idle uses your Wi-Fi and proximity to find a player live, in real time, the moment you're both waiting.
Reads nothing of yours
Idle only knows when your agent is busy or finished, it doesn't read your prompts, your code or any of your data.
Gets out of the way
When your agent is done, so is the bar. Games pause until next time.
Questions
What is Idle?
Idle is a free desktop app that lets you play a quick game of chess, blackjack, tic-tac-toe or rock paper scissors with someone nearby while your AI coding agent, such as Claude Code or Codex, is busy working on a task. It runs on Mac and, in beta, Windows.
How does Idle know when my AI agent is busy?
When you connect it, Idle adds a small hook to Claude Code and/or Codex that tells Idle when the agent starts and stops working. The hook sends only the word busy or idle to your own computer. Idle does not read your prompts, your code or your files.
Who do I play against?
Other people running Idle on the same Wi-Fi or office network, or in the same office through an invite link, even if they work from home. If nobody is available at that moment, you play a computer-controlled opponent so a game is always ready.
Is Idle free?
Yes. Idle is free to download and use, and no money or prizes are staked on any game. Future versions may add more games and features; anything involving payments would be optional and introduced separately.
Which AI tools and computers does Idle work with?
Idle works with Claude Code and Codex, on Macs with Apple Silicon (M1 or later) and on Windows 10 or 11 (beta). Linux is planned but not available yet.
Is Idle safe to install?
Idle is an early, independent app. It is not yet notarised by Apple or code-signed for Windows, so your computer will warn you when you first open it. It does not read your prompts, code or files, and the Trust page lists every file it touches and every connection it makes, with commands you can run to check. The Help menu on this page can also hand the installer to Claude or ChatGPT for an independent review.
How do I invite a colleague or friend?
Click the share icon in the Idle popup, copy the invite link and send it. They open it, install Idle and click Join, and you can then find each other even if you are on different networks.
Will it get in the way while I work?
No. A small bar drops down a few seconds after your agent starts working, you can ignore it, and it disappears when the agent finishes. It never takes the keyboard focus, so it won't swallow what you are typing.
Built by a real person
Hello! Idle came to mind when I realised using AI to build can become a new form of brainrot, there needs to be a way to keep your brain active inbetween prompts. This is a free project and there's not much of a goal with it, I will update it if there's feedback given, my main focus is making people less eager to pick their phone up inbetween prompts.
- Callum