macOS Developer Setup

This guide covers the necessary steps to build and run the Moltbot macOS application from source.

Prerequisites

Before building the app, ensure you have the following installed:

  1. Xcode 26.2+: Required for Swift development.
  2. Node.js 22+ & pnpm: Required for the gateway, CLI, and packaging scripts.

1. Install Dependencies

Install the project-wide dependencies:

pnpm install

2. Build and Package the App

To build the macOS app and package it into dist/Moltbot.app, run:

./scripts/package-mac-app.sh

If you don’t have an Apple Developer ID certificate, the script will automatically use ad-hoc signing (-).

For dev run modes, signing flags, and Team ID troubleshooting, see the macOS app README: https://github.com/moltbot/moltbot/blob/main/apps/macos/README.md

Note: Ad-hoc signed apps may trigger security prompts. If the app crashes immediately with “Abort trap 6”, see the Troubleshooting section.

3. Install the CLI

The macOS app expects a global moltbot CLI install to manage background tasks.

To install it (recommended):

  1. Open the Moltbot app.
  2. Go to the General settings tab.
  3. Click “Install CLI”.

Alternatively, install it manually:

npm install -g moltbot@<version>

Troubleshooting

Build Fails: Toolchain or SDK Mismatch

The macOS app build expects the latest macOS SDK and Swift 6.2 toolchain.

System dependencies (required):

  • Latest macOS version available in Software Update (required by Xcode 26.2 SDKs)
  • Xcode 26.2 (Swift 6.2 toolchain)

Checks:

xcodebuild -version
xcrun swift --version

If versions don’t match, update macOS/Xcode and re-run the build.

App Crashes on Permission Grant

If the app crashes when you try to allow Speech Recognition or Microphone access, it may be due to a corrupted TCC cache or signature mismatch.

Fix:

  1. Reset the TCC permissions: 
    tccutil reset All com.clawdbot.mac.debug
  2. If that fails, change the BUNDLE_ID temporarily in scripts/package-mac-app.sh to force a “clean slate” from macOS.

Gateway “Starting…” indefinitely

If the gateway status stays on “Starting…”, check if a zombie process is holding the port:

moltbot gateway status
moltbot gateway stop

# If you’re not using a LaunchAgent (dev mode / manual runs), find the listener:
lsof -nP -iTCP:18789 -sTCP:LISTEN

If a manual run is holding the port, stop that process (Ctrl+C). As a last resort, kill the PID you found above.