Hodor – macOS Prompt Launcher for AI Tools

TL;DR

TL;DR: Hodor is a free, open-source macOS utility that stores your frequently-used AI prompts and pastes them into any app with a keyboard shortcut or a typed keyword — 701KB native SwiftUI binary, no Electron, no network calls.

Source and Accuracy Notes

⚠️ This section is MANDATORY. All links must be verified from actual source, not guessed.

• Project page: hodor.design — verified via direct visit
• Source repository: github.com/woody-design/hodor — verified via curl of README.md
• License: GPL v3 — verified via LICENSE file
• HN launch thread: news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48296678 — Show HN
• Source last checked: 2026-08-13 (README commit, v1.3.2)

What Is Hodor?

If you use ChatGPT, Claude, or any AI tool regularly, you probably have a handful of prompts you retype constantly — code review templates, debugging scaffolds, meeting summaries. Hodor eliminates that friction.

It is a native macOS app (SwiftUI + SwiftData, no WebView, no Electron) that stores your prompts locally and surfaces them in three ways:

• Screen edge — Slide your cursor to the screen edge to open a prompt sidebar. Click a prompt to paste it.
• Keyboard shortcut — Assign a letter A–Z to any prompt. Press Ctrl+Opt+R then that letter to paste instantly.
• Keyword — Set a text trigger like ;kit. Type it anywhere and Hodor replaces it with your full prompt in place.

All three methods paste the prompt into the currently focused text field, or onto the clipboard if nothing is focused. Zero network requests — the developer explicitly calls out that searching the source for URLSession returns nothing.

Setup Workflow

Step 1: Download and Install

Download the latest .dmg from the project page:

open https://hodor.design
# Click "Download for macOS" to get Hodor-1.3.2.dmg
# Open the DMG and drag Hodor into Applications

Hodor is Apple-notarized, so macOS will run it without complaints.

Step 2: Grant Accessibility Permission

On first launch, Hodor requests macOS Accessibility permission. This is required to simulate Cmd+V paste events — the same mechanism used by Raycast, Alfred, and other macOS productivity tools.

# macOS will prompt: System Settings → Privacy & Security → Accessibility
# Add Hodor to the list and enable it

The README is explicit: Hodor does not record keystrokes, read screen content, or access other apps’ data. The entire source is on GitHub and the binary is small enough (701KB) to audit manually.

Step 3: Save Your First Prompt

1. Press Ctrl+Opt+Space to open the sidebar.
2. Click the + button.
3. Enter your prompt text and optionally assign a shortcut letter or keyword.
4. Click Save.

Step 4: Use It

• Sidebar: Slide to screen edge → click a prompt.
• Shortcut: Press Ctrl+Opt+R, then the assigned letter.
• Keyword: Type your keyword trigger anywhere and press Space or Return.

Deeper Analysis

Size and footprint. At 701KB, Hodor is roughly 1/1000th the size of a typical Electron app. It launches instantly and uses negligible RAM. The binary is small enough to decompile and audit in an afternoon — a meaningful property for a tool that handles potentially sensitive prompt data.

Privacy model. The README makes a strong privacy claim: zero network requests, no analytics, no telemetry, no update checks. For a tool that handles personal prompts, this is the right default. The absence of a network stack also means it cannot phone home even if compromised.

Accessibility API. The paste mechanism is standard macOS Accessibility — CGEventPost with kCGHIDEventTap. This is the same low-level API Raycast, Alfred, and Keyboard Maestro use. It requires the Accessibility permission but does not require Admin privileges.

Keywords vs. shortcuts. The keyword approach is clever: you type ;review in any text field and your saved prompt replaces it in place. This keeps you in context without switching apps. The shortcut approach (Ctrl+Opt+R + letter) is faster for power users who memorize their bindings.

Dual-display support. Settings allow pinning the sidebar to a specific display or following the focused screen — a thoughtful touch for multi-monitor setups.

Practical Evaluation Checklist

• [x] Native macOS binary (SwiftUI, no Electron)
• [x] Binary size: 701KB — auditable
• [x] No network calls — verified by README (search for URLSession returns nothing)
• [x] Apple notarized
• [x] Three trigger methods: screen edge, shortcut, keyword
• [x] Dual-display support
• [x] Free and open source (GPL v3)
• [x] macOS Accessibility API for pasting (same as Raycast/Alfred)

Security Notes

Hodor’s threat model is straightforward: a local app that types text on your behalf. The security boundary is macOS Accessibility, which grants apps the ability to simulate input. This permission is also held by your browser, IDE, and terminal emulator.

What Hodor can do: simulate Cmd+V paste events into focused text fields.
What Hodor cannot do: read your screen, intercept keystrokes outside its keyword trigger, or send data anywhere (no network stack).

For sensitive environments, the full source is on GitHub and the binary is small enough to build from source and compare hashes.

FAQ

Q: Does Hodor work with every macOS app? A: It works with any app that accepts text input via the standard macOS text field API. Most apps do. Some protected fields (password managers, secure notes) may not be accessible to the Accessibility API.

Q: Does it work with ChatGPT, Claude, and other web-based AI tools? A: Yes — as long as the browser tab is focused and a text field is active, Hodor can paste into web-based tools the same way it pastes into native apps.

Q: How is this different from Raycast or Alfred? A: Raycast and Alfred are general-purpose launchers with plugin ecosystems. Hodor is a single-purpose tool focused only on prompt launching. It is smaller, simpler, and specifically designed for AI-heavy users who want one thing: instant prompt paste without switching context.

Q: Is my data sent anywhere? A: No. Hodor has no network code. Your prompts are stored in SwiftData on-device and never leave your Mac.

Conclusion

Hodor solves a narrow but real problem for anyone who uses AI tools daily. If you find yourself copying the same prompts from a notes app over and over, this eliminates that friction. At 701KB, with zero network calls and fully auditable source, it is the kind of tool you can install without hesitation.

Download it at hodor.design or check the GitHub releases page for the latest version.