A quiet home for everything worth keeping.
Native macOS notes, quick captures, and an assistant that can search your knowledge.
Features · Get started · Shortcuts · Development · License
Good ideas rarely arrive in the right window. Worktable gives you somewhere to put them: a snippet from another app, a link to revisit, an image, or a thought you do not want to lose. Keep them in a local library, connect them into knowledge, and ask questions when you need the context back.
Capture → Collect → Connect
- Capture the moment. Type a note, add an image, or press Shift three times quickly to capture a selection from another app.
- Keep the context. Search your entries, browse by topic, and bring your GitHub stars into the same library.
- Find the connection. Build knowledge, then ask the assistant about what you have saved. Citation chips take you back to the original entries.
| What you can do | |
|---|---|
| Quick capture | Save selected text or images with triple-Shift, without switching away from the app you are using |
| A library for more than text | Keep notes, links, and images together; open full entries and view images fullscreen |
| Search and organize | Filter entries and sort by time, alphabetically, or by topic; use keyboard navigation and multi-selection |
| Connected knowledge | Build local topics and relationships, with optional AI topic enrichment from your chosen provider |
| An assistant with context | Read streaming answers, follow source citations, stop a running answer, and reopen saved chats |
| GitHub stars | Import repositories you have starred, including their descriptions and links |
| At home on macOS | Stay in the menu bar, use native menus and shortcuts, and switch between Ayu Light and Ayu Dark |
Built with Rust, GPUI, and GPUI Component. The AI runtime lives in the native app through Rig; there is no JavaScript worker or separate sidecar to install.
You will need:
- macOS — the packaged app targets macOS 13 or later.
- Rust installed through rustup — the repository pins
its nightly toolchain in
rust-toolchain.toml. - Xcode Command Line Tools — install them with
xcode-select --installif they are not already available.
git clone https://github.com/MalinrRuwan/worktable.git
cd worktable
cargo run -p worktable-appRustup selects the pinned toolchain automatically. The first build takes longer while it compiles the native UI dependencies.
- Take the welcome tour. Every step is skippable, and you can replay it from Settings → Appearance.
- Enable capture when you want it. The tour links to macOS Accessibility settings. Triple-Shift uses the foreground app's Copy action and clipboard, so that app must support copying the selected text or image.
- Add your first note. The note bar is always ready: type and press Return. Use its plus button to choose an image.
- Set up the assistant, optionally. Open Settings → Providers, configure a provider, and choose a model. Build knowledge before asking about your library.
Notes and the local knowledge-building pass work without an AI provider. Closing the window keeps Worktable in the menu bar by default; change Keep running in the menu bar in Settings → General if you prefer closing to quit.
| Provider | Authentication |
|---|---|
| OpenCode, with Go and Zen services | API key |
| OpenAI | API key |
| ChatGPT subscription | Device OAuth sign-in |
| Anthropic | API key |
| DeepSeek | API key |
Available models come from authenticated provider discovery, not a bundled model list. ChatGPT subscription sign-in is separate from an OpenAI API key. Provider access, limits, and any charges depend on the service you choose.
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| ⇧ three times quickly | Capture selected text or an image from another app |
| ⌘F | Return to Entries and focus search |
| ⌘1 / ⌘2 | Show Entries / Assistant |
| ⌘, | Open Settings |
| ⌘T | Switch between light and dark themes |
| ↑ / ↓ | Move the entry selection |
| Return | Open the selected entry |
| Delete (⌫) | Delete selected entries |
| ⌘C / ⌘⇧C | Copy selected entries / copy the selected entry's link |
| ⌘⇧P | Clear search |
| ⌘Return | Submit the note bar |
| Escape (⎋) | Dismiss the current overlay or image viewer |
| ⌘Q | Quit Worktable |
Entry commands are scoped to the Entries page and yield to focused text fields. Return in the note bar adds a note; Return in search sends the query to the assistant instead of opening an entry.
Worktable stores its library locally. By default:
| Location | Contents |
|---|---|
~/.worktable/worktable.db |
Entries, settings, provider credentials, saved chats, and model context |
~/.worktable/media/ |
Imported images, hard-linked when possible and copied across devices |
~/.worktable/images/ |
Images saved by global capture |
Local storage does not mean local AI inference. Assistant prompts, retrieved entry content, and content used for AI topic enrichment can be sent to your configured provider. GitHub imports contact GitHub, and loading remote images contacts their hosts.
Provider credentials are stored in Worktable's database, not the macOS Keychain. Treat the database and its backups as sensitive, and never commit credentials to the repository.
One native app, with a small Rust workspace:
| Crate | Responsibility |
|---|---|
worktable-app |
macOS shell, main view, settings, capture, and service orchestration |
worktable-ui |
Shared motion, activity indicators, streaming text, and interactive citations |
worktable-ai |
Rig-backed assistant, providers, model discovery, and cancellation |
worktable-db |
SQLite persistence for the native app |
worktable-events |
Typed events shared across the app and runtime |
worktable-helix |
Embedded knowledge graph, topic extraction, and search |
The everyday development loop is:
cargo run -p worktable-appWorkspace crates retain debug information, while dependencies are optimized so the debug UI stays responsive.
cargo test -p worktable-ui
cargo test -p worktable-app
cargo test --workspace
cargo clippy --workspace --all-targets -- -D warnings
cargo fmt --all -- --checkUI interaction tests exercise the real view using stable debug selectors. Provider tests do not make live AI requests.
Real Metal visual snapshots
The macOS visual runner is a binary so it can render on the main thread:
cargo run -p worktable-app --bin worktable_visual_test --features visual-testsTo intentionally update its baselines:
UPDATE_BASELINE=1 cargo run -p worktable-app --bin worktable_visual_test --features visual-testsVisual snapshots complement interaction tests; they do not replace them.
| Variable | Purpose |
|---|---|
WORKTABLE_DB_PATH |
Use a different database file |
WORKTABLE_THEMES_DIR |
Watch a different directory for development theme overrides |
RUST_LOG |
Configure logging, for example worktable=debug |
Set the version you want to package:
VERSION=1.3.0 sh scripts/package-macos.shThe script builds the release binary, bundles themes and the app icon, signs the app, and creates:
dist/
├── Worktable.app
├── Worktable-1.3.0.dmg
└── Worktable-1.3.0.dmg.sha256
Packaging uses the host architecture and ad-hoc signing by default; it does
not notarize the app. Generated files in dist/ are ignored by Git.
Bug reports and focused improvements are welcome. Read AGENTS.md
for the project's architecture, UI, accessibility, and testing conventions
before changing code. Include tests for behavior changes and run the checks
above before submitting a pull request.
Worktable builds on GPUI from Zed, GPUI Component from Longbridge, and Rig. Its agent presentation includes components adapted from aiCSS, with motion inspired by transitions.dev and the Ayu theme family.
Worktable is licensed under the MIT License.
Copyright © 2026 Malin Dhamsara. Dependencies and adapted components retain their respective licenses.