Cai vs Alter
Alter and Cai are both native macOS AI assistants that work across apps. Alter is voice-first and cloud-first — it reads your screen context, offers 50+ models, meeting recording, and voice dictation, with paid tiers up to $720. Cai is keyboard-first and local-first — open source, completely free, with a built-in AI model, custom shell actions, and GitHub/Linear integration out of the box.
When to use Cai
- You prefer a keyboard-first workflow — press ⌥C and go
- You want a local-first AI that works without an internet connection
- You want a completely free, open-source tool with no paid tiers
- You need custom shell actions, GitHub issues, and Linear tickets built in
- You want to build your own actions with custom prompts, URLs, and shell commands
When to use Alter
- You prefer a voice-first workflow with dictation and voice commands
- You want screen context awareness that reads your active app content
- You need meeting recording and transcription built in
- You need 50+ cloud AI models with automatic model selection
- You want integrations with Google Workspace, Hubspot, Notion
Feature comparison
| Feature | Cai | Alter |
|---|---|---|
| Works on selected text | ✓ | ✓ |
| Screen context awareness | ✕ | AppSense |
| Voice control & dictation | ✕ | ✓ |
| 100% local by default | ✓ | Optional (via Ollama) |
| Free and open source | ✓ | Free tier (paid: $240/yr) |
| Built-in AI model (no setup) | ✓ | ✕ |
| Cloud AI models (GPT-4, Claude, etc.) | Via external providers | 50+ built-in |
| Apple Intelligence support | ✓ | ✕ |
| Meeting recording & transcription | ✕ | ✓ |
| OCR / Image to text | ✓ | ✓ |
| Custom shell actions | ✓ | ✕ |
| GitHub & Linear integration | ✓ | ✕ |
| Clipboard history | ✓ | ✕ |
| Build your own actions | ✓ | 80+ pre-built |
| Community extensions | ✓ | ✕ |