Question 1

What is Skales?

Accepted Answer

Skales is a local AI agent for Windows and macOS. It handles emails, calendar, browser automation, file management, and more. Everything runs on your machine. No cloud account needed.

Question 2

Is Skales free?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Skales is free for personal and educational use under the BSL-1.1 license. Commercial use requires a separate license.

Question 3

Do I need Docker to run Skales?

Accepted Answer

No. Skales is a native desktop app. Download the .exe or .dmg, double-click, done. No Docker, no terminal, no Node.js.

Question 4

What API key do I need?

Accepted Answer

We recommend OpenRouter for beginners (free tier available). Skales also supports OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Groq, Mistral, and Ollama for fully offline use.

Question 5

Does Skales work offline?

Accepted Answer

With Ollama connected, yes. Skales runs completely offline. Without a local model, you need internet for API calls to your chosen AI provider.

Question 6

What are the system requirements?

Accepted Answer

Windows 10+ or macOS 12+. 4 GB RAM minimum. 500 MB disk space. No GPU required.

Question 7

How long does installation take?

Accepted Answer

About 30 seconds for the installer, plus 1–2 minutes for first-time setup (choosing language, entering API key).

Question 8

Is Skales open source?

Accepted Answer

Skales is source-available under BSL-1.1. You can read every line of code on GitHub. It is not MIT/GPL open source. Free for personal use — commercial use requires a license.

Question 9

Does Skales send my data anywhere?

Accepted Answer

No. All data stays at ~/.skales-data on your machine. Skales has no servers, no accounts, no cloud sync. The only external calls are to your chosen AI provider.

Question 10

Is Skales GDPR / DSGVO compliant?

Accepted Answer

Yes. No personal data is processed on external servers. Your conversations, files, and settings never leave your device. Optional telemetry is opt-in only and collects only app version and OS.

Question 11

Are my API keys safe?

Accepted Answer

API keys are stored encrypted in your local settings file. They are never sent to Skales servers — because we don't have servers.

Question 12

What is Safety Mode?

Accepted Answer

Skales has three safety modes: Safe (blocks dangerous commands), Advanced (asks before risky actions like deleting files), and Unrestricted (no blocks — your responsibility).

Question 13

Can Skales access my entire computer?

Accepted Answer

It depends on your Safety Mode. In Safe mode, dangerous operations are blocked. In Advanced mode, you approve each risky action. Skales never does anything without your knowledge.

Question 14

Is the Desktop Buddy always watching my screen?

Accepted Answer

No. The Desktop Buddy is a floating widget you interact with by clicking. It does not record your screen, monitor your activity, or run background surveillance.

Question 15

Who can see my conversations?

Accepted Answer

Only you. Conversations are stored locally in ~/.skales-data. Nobody else has access unless they have physical access to your computer.

Question 16

What can Skales actually do?

Accepted Answer

Email (read, send, organize), Calendar (view, create events), Browser automation, File management, Shell commands, Web search, Image/video generation, Voice chat, Telegram/WhatsApp/Discord integration, Custom skills, Autonomous scheduling, and more.

Question 17

What is the Desktop Buddy?

Accepted Answer

An animated gecko mascot that lives on your desktop. Click it, describe a task, and it executes with approve/decline buttons. It can do everything the main chat can do.

Question 18

What is Lio AI?

Accepted Answer

Lio AI is Skales' built-in code builder. Describe an app in plain language and Lio builds it. A 6-year-old used it to build a Snake game in 12 minutes.

Question 19

What languages does Skales support?

Accepted Answer

The UI is available in English, German (Deutsch), Spanish (Español), and French (Français). The AI itself can communicate in any language your chosen model supports.

Question 20

Can I use Skales with Ollama?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Connect Ollama as a provider in Settings and run any local model. This enables fully offline operation with zero data leaving your machine.

Question 21

What is Group Chat?

Accepted Answer

A feature where multiple AI models debate a topic. Configure 2–4 AI personas from different providers and watch them discuss your question across rounds.

Question 22

Can I create custom skills?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Custom skills are reusable prompt templates with parameters. Create them in the Skills page or ask Skales to create one for you.

Question 23

Does Skales support voice?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Voice Chat uses Groq Whisper for speech-to-text and ElevenLabs or browser TTS for text-to-speech. Speak naturally and hear responses.

Question 24

What AI providers does Skales support?

Accepted Answer

OpenRouter, OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Groq, Mistral, Ollama, and any OpenAI-compatible endpoint (llama.cpp, LM Studio, vLLM, etc.). 13+ providers total.

Question 25

How much does it cost to run Skales?

Accepted Answer

The app is free. You pay your AI provider directly. With OpenRouter and a budget model, most users spend $3–10/month. With Ollama, $0.

Question 26

Does Skales auto-update?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Skales checks for updates on launch and can update with one click. Updates are downloaded from skales.app and verified with SHA-256 checksums.

Question 27

Can I use Skales on Linux?

Accepted Answer

Not yet. Windows and macOS only. Linux support is planned for a future release.

Question 28

How much RAM does Skales use?

Accepted Answer

About 300 MB in idle. More during active tasks (browser automation, large file processing).

Question 29

Can I connect Skales to my phone?

Accepted Answer

Yes, via Telegram or WhatsApp. Send messages to your Skales bot from anywhere and it executes tasks on your computer at home.

Question 30

Where is the source code?

Accepted Answer

GitHub: github.com/skalesapp/skales. BSL-1.1 license. Read every line.

Frequently Asked Questions

Getting Started

Privacy & Security

Features

Technical

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