Welcome to OpenBuddies

OpenBuddies is a free, open-source, self-hosted way to give your children AI safely. It runs on a computer in your home. Your children make their own AI buddies to chat, draw, take quizzes and get homework help, and you can read every message and set the rules.

David

Jackson, 11

Hi, we're David and Jackson!

We're building OpenBuddies for ourselves: a way for our family to use AI safely, in a fun and friendly way.

As we build it, we want to share it with you and your family too. So feel free to check it out, fork it, and contribute back. And if your family enjoys their buddies, a star on GitHub helps other parents find it.

Join us: star OpenBuddies on GitHub

These docs are split into four kinds of page, so you can find what you need quickly. (It’s the Diátaxis way of writing docs.) There’s also a section of its own for writing your own apps.

Tutorials

Learn by doing. Start here if you’re new: set up OpenBuddies for your family, step by step.

How-to guides

Get a particular job done. For parents: add a child, read their chats, back up. For kids: make a buddy, get homework help, take a quiz.

Reference

Look things up: every command, every file in the household folder, every setting.

Explanation

Understand the why: how a message is handled, help levels, and the safety model.

Writing your own app

Make your own apps for your child’s home screen, in plain text. No coding needed.

Where to start

Set up OpenBuddies for your familyThe first tutorial: install it, run the setup, and pair your child's phone. About 15 minutes.

Write your first appMake a Times Tables app for your child's home screen, in plain text.

How a message is handledWhat happens between your child pressing send and the reply appearing.