Hey HN!
We built Kavim, a local-first, open-source AI brainstorming canvas for visual thinking and collaboration. It lets you chat with AI, branch ideas without losing context, and collaborate in real time — all without relying on the cloud.
Core ideas:
Visual branching that preserves context across conversations
Real-time, peer-to-peer collaboration (built on Yjs + WebRTC)
Local storage and offline-first workflows; no cloud required
Bring-your-own AI: plug in ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, or others
Fully open source (AGPL-3.0) and free to download
No subscriptions — you only pay your AI provider if applicable
Why we built it:
We were building an AI QA tool before realizing how hard it is to think visually with AI while keeping ownership of your data. So we pivoted to create Kavim — a tool where ideas evolve like conversations, not documents.
Tech:
React + Electron + Yjs + WebRTC + OpenAI/Anthropic APIs.
Everything runs locally — no central server required.
Status:
MVP is live: https://kavim.deepelegant.com/
GitHub: https://github.com/deep-elegant/kavim
Releases (download the app): https://github.com/deep-elegant/kavim/releases
Discord: https://discord.com/invite/c99hvZMJda
We’d love your thoughts on:
Local-first architecture (Yjs + WebRTC challenges)
UI/UX for branching AI chats
Any use cases you’d like to see supported
Thanks for reading and testing!
Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45751519
Points: 1
# Comments: 0
Source: kavim.deepelegant.com
