When the work is a graph, use a canvas.
Herdr is a compelling home for persistent coding-agent terminals. MAO is the native visual workspace for the teams who need to see, direct, and connect that work across local and remote projects.
- Native Rust app
- GPU-rendered with GPUI
- Unlimited workspaces
Choose MAO when
The difficult part is coordination, not persistence.
A canvas, not a terminal multiplexer
Herdr is optimized for a persistent, terminal-first runtime. MAO is for seeing the whole operation at once: agents, notes, files, devices, portals, and the connections between them.
Native spatial performance
MAO is a desktop-native Rust app rendered with GPUI. The canvas is built for panning, zooming, arranging, and inspecting dense work without treating the visual layer as an afterthought.
Remote projects in context
Keep the repository, terminals, agents, Git work, notes, and layout on the remote machine where the compute lives—then direct it all through the same native canvas.
Unlimited workspaces
Keep a workspace for every repository, client, experiment, and remote machine. MAO does not make project context a metered resource.
Visible coordination
Give every agent a role and a place. Connections make hand-offs explicit, while status and terminal output make it clear what needs attention.
Your actual tools
Run Claude Code, Codex, Grok, OpenCode, and shell sessions as real terminals. MAO complements the CLIs and accounts you already use.
A useful distinction
Herdr keeps terminals running. MAO keeps the work legible.
If your primary need is a background agent runtime that survives disconnection, Herdr is a strong fit. If you need to assign roles, connect agents, inspect their context, and understand a multi-agent build at a glance, start the same real terminals on a MAO canvas.
Frequently asked questions
Herdr is optimized as a persistent, terminal-first runtime for coding agents. MAO is a desktop-native canvas for seeing and directing that work: agents, notes, files, devices, portals and the connections between them, across local and remote projects.
Herdr is a strong fit when your main need is a background agent runtime that survives disconnection. MAO fits when you need to assign roles, connect agents, inspect their context and understand a multi-agent build at a glance.
No. MAO runs real terminal sessions, but places them on a canvas with notes, files, portals and devices and the connections between them, so you can see the whole operation at once.
Yes. A MAO workspace can live on a Linux server over SSH: the repository, terminals, agents, Git work, notes and layout stay on that machine, and you direct them from the native canvas on your desktop.
Built in public
Ask for the feature you need next.
MAO is built close to the people using it. Send a request directly to Miguel, or bring it to the MAO Discord channel so the community can help shape what comes next.
Questions? Ask in the Discord or write to hello@miguer.com.