Anthropic removed /buddy from Claude Code in v2.1.97. Buddi gives your buddy a permanent home in the MacBook notch.
Features
Claude Code Integration
- Live session monitoring — Track multiple concurrent Claude Code sessions in real-time
- Permission approvals — Approve or deny tool executions directly from the notch
- Chat interface — View full conversation history with markdown rendering, send messages back to Claude
- Usage tracking — Session and weekly utilization at a glance
- Session sneak peek — Configurable notifications in the notch when Claude Code is waiting for input, with scrolling session title and sparkles icon
- Terminal fallback — Send messages to standalone Claude Code sessions via AppleScript keystroke injection
- Multiplexer support — Works with cmux and tmux sessions (with native message passing)
- Auto-setup — Hooks install automatically on first launch
Buddy Characters
18 species — duck, goose, blob, cat, dragon, octopus, owl, penguin, turtle, snail, ghost, axolotl, capybara, cactus, robot, rabbit, mushroom, and chonk. Each buddy has a unique identity generated from your system, with different eyes, hats, rarity levels, and personality stats. They animate through idle, working, reading, sleeping, and error states — matching what Claude Code is doing.
Notch Utility
- Music player — Album art, playback controls, and audio visualizer
- Calendar — Upcoming events at a glance
- Battery — Status and charging indicator
- HUD replacement — Custom volume and brightness overlays
- File shelf — Drag-and-drop file staging area
- Webcam preview — Quick mirror from the notch
- Keyboard shortcuts — Customizable hotkeys
Requirements
- macOS 15.0+ (Sequoia)
- MacBook with notch (or external display support)
- Claude Code installed
Install
Homebrew
brew install --cask vietairs/buddi/buddi
Manual Download
Download the latest .dmg from the Releases page.
Note: This is an ad-hoc signed build (no Apple Developer cert). On first launch, right-click the app → Open → Open to bypass Gatekeeper.
How It Works
Claude Code → Hooks → Unix Socket → Buddi → Notch UI
Buddi registers hooks with Claude Code on launch. When Claude Code emits events — tool use, thinking, session start/end, permission requests — the hooks forward them to Buddi over a Unix domain socket. The app maps events to buddy animations and UI state. When Claude needs permission, the notch expands with approve/deny buttons.
Remote Sessions
Monitor Claude Code running on remote servers (GPU machines, VMs, Linux boxes) directly in Buddi. A relay server on your Mac bridges remote events back to the notch via SSH tunnel.
Quick setup (4 steps):
1. Build and start the relay server on your Mac:
cd remote/relay-server-rs
cargo build --release
./target/release/buddi-relay
Output confirms listening ports:
Buddi Relay Server (no auth)
Unix socket : /tmp/buddi.sock
TCP port : 9876 ← for SSH tunnel
HTTP port : 9877 ← for direct HTTP
2. Open a persistent SSH reverse tunnel from your Mac:
ssh -R 9876:localhost:9876 user@remote-host
Keep this terminal open while using Claude Code on the remote.
3. On the remote server, install Buddi hooks:
bash /path/to/remote/install-remote-hooks.sh --tcp
4. Start Claude Code on the remote — sessions appear in Buddi automatically.
See Remote Sessions Guide for HTTP mode, environment variables, troubleshooting, and security notes.
Building from Source
- Clone the repo
- Open
buddi.xcodeproj in Xcode 16+
- Build and run — SPM dependencies resolve automatically
Acknowledgements
Buddi is built on top of open-source work by others:
- Buddi by TalkValue — The original Buddi app this fork extends. Core notch UI, Claude Code integration, buddy characters, permission system, chat interface, and terminal fallback messaging all originate from the upstream project.
- boring.notch by TheBoredTeam — The notch UI framework that Buddi is built upon. Music player, calendar, battery, HUD replacement, file shelf, and the core notch rendering system all come from boring.notch.
- Claude Island by farouqaldori — The predecessor to Buddi. Claude Code session monitoring, hook system, buddy characters, and the chat interface originate from Claude Island.
See NOTICE for full attribution and licensing details.
License
This project is licensed under the GNU General Public License v3.0.
*Built by [TalkValue](https://trytalkvalue.com?utm_source=github&utm_medium=buddi_repo&utm_campaign=buddi) — we build tools for people who build with AI.*
[Event Intelligence Playbook](https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/event-intelligence-playbook-7432120487045926912/?utm_source=github&utm_medium=buddi_repo&utm_campaign=buddi) · our weekly newsletter on AI + events
© 2026 TalkValue