What it does
Insomnia is a small eye icon in your Mac's menu bar. You enter how many days, hours and minutes your Mac should stay awake, and it counts down. Its GitHub description says it is meant for timed sessions where an AI coding agent keeps working while you're away.
When you close the lid during a session, it can turn off the screen, mute audio, pause chosen apps such as Slack or Discord, and turn on Low Power Mode. Opening the lid tries to undo these. On battery, it switches to Low Power Mode and can end the session when the charge gets low or the Mac gets very hot.
It keeps a record of every change so it can undo them if the app crashes. Optional extras can join your iPhone hotspot if Wi-Fi drops, or type "continue" into a coding agent's terminal window that you mark. The makers say it is experimental, that recovery can fail, and that the Mac should sit on a stable, well-ventilated surface, not in a closed bag.
Who it's for
Mac laptop owners who want long-running tasks, such as AI coding agents, to keep going with the lid closed for a set amount of time.
Can I use it without coding?
With some setup. You install it with a guided install (or by asking a coding agent to do it), and it needs your Mac password to add a system rule. New to this? Start here.
Can I run it?
- Cost
- FreeNothing to pay or sign up for.
- Runs on
- Mac
- Computer
- An ordinary computer is fine
- Privacy
- Runs on your own device: your data stays with you
- API key
- Not needed
Try it
- Check that your Mac has Apple silicon and macOS 26 or later.
- Follow the project's install guide, and review the system rule it adds before entering your password.
- Click the eye in the menu bar, enter a short time, press Enter, and watch the first session.
Before you download
Plain-AyI is an independent guide: we link to each project's official pages, but we don't host, review or endorse the software, and we can't accept responsibility for how it works on your device. Please download and install at your own discretion.
Using Claude Code, Cursor or another AI coding assistant? Paste the prompt and it will walk you through the setup.New to this?
Before you install
- Only download from the official GitHub page or the official download page above. Copies with similar names exist for many popular projects.
- Plain-AyI is an independent guide and doesn't host or review the software it lists. Please check each project's official page before installing.
- License (MIT): Very permissive: free to use, change and share, including for business.
- More on staying safe