AI apps on your Mac

AI apps · Updated 2026-11-01

AI apps on the same Mac read your illuminate sessions directly. It's free, it's read-only, and nothing leaves your Mac.

Connect an app

1. Open illuminate's Settings → AI Apps.
2. Find your app:
   • Claude Desktop or Cursor: press Connect. illuminate adds itself to the app's MCP servers and leaves your other servers as they are. It keeps a copy of the app's settings file as it was, next to it.
   • Claude Code: copy the command shown and run it once in Terminal. Claude Code then has illuminate in every project.
   • Codex: add the lines shown to ~/.codex/config.toml.
   • Another app: add the settings shown to the app's MCP servers. Most apps use the same mcpServers format.
3. Restart the app if it was open.
4. Ask it something, such as "what's my latest illuminate report?"

Disconnect

In Settings → AI Apps, press Disconnect next to the app. For apps you set up by hand, remove illuminate from their MCP servers.

If it doesn't work

• Restart the AI app. Most apps only read their MCP servers when they start.
• Check where illuminate is. The connection points to the installed illuminate. If you move or reinstall it, connect again.
• Mention illuminate. Some apps only use a tool when it fits the question; "in illuminate" helps.