BrainDrive is the open source ChatGPT alternative you fully own and control. Use, customize, and monetize your BrainDrive however you want. No Big Tech overlords. Just your AI. Your rules.
- Own: MIT Licensed & Self-Hosted
- Build: Modular & Easy to Customize
- Earn: On Your Terms, not Big Tech's
Think WordPress for AI: Install BrainDrive → Add your plugin → Ship your AI powered feature.
🚀 Ready to get started? Install Guide
🔨Ready to start building? Developer Quick Start Guide
A chat interface for running local and API based AI models:
A plugin manager to easily search existing, and add new plugins to your BrainDrive:
A page builder to create custom interfaces using your own and other publicly available plugins:
A full set of developer resources, code examples, and tutorials that make it easy to build on BrainDrive.
Use BrainDrive as your personal AI system and/or build AI-powered products and services to offer to others.
All under your ownership and control, with no Big Tech lock-in. Your AI. Your Rules.
When building on BrainDrive, the only limit is your imagination.
Examples include:
- Custom AI chatbots with specialized knowledge
- AI-powered productivity tools
- Data analysis dashboards
- Custom UIs for specific AI models
- Multi-plugin workflows where components work together seamlessly
Host locally or on the cloud host of your choice.
Build for yourself, build for the user-owned AI community, build for customers. Your AI. Your Rules.
Core System (this repo):
- Frontend: React + TypeScript + Material UI
- Backend: Python + FastAPI + SQLite
- Core Plugins: Essential system plugins
Plugin Ecosystem (separate repos):
- Each plugin is its own repository (release on your Github)
- 1-Click Install via Plugin Manager or manual build
- Full Module Federation architecture
- Drag & Drop Interface: Build applications visually without coding
- Responsive Design: Works on desktop, tablet, and mobile
- Plugin Marketplace: Extend functionality with community plugins
- Own Your Data: Host locally or deploy anywhere, no vendor lock-in
- 1-Minute Development Cycle: Edit → Build → Refresh
- Zero Dependencies: Service Bridges handle all complexity
- Built-in Services: API, Theme, Settings, Events, Context, State
- React Class Components: Established patterns with TypeScript support
- Lifecycle Manager: Python-based automated installation system
- Module Federation: Modern plugin architecture with hot-reload
- Full Control: Own your plugins, data, and deployment
- Node.js 16.x or higher
- Python 3.9 or higher (Python 3.11 recommended)
- Git
- Conda or Python's venv module for environment management
- Installation Guide - Complete instructions how to setup your BrainDrive
- Developer Quick Start Guide - designed to get you up and running building plugins in 30 minutes or less.
- User and Developer Forum - Get support and discuss the future of user-owned AI
- GitHub Issues - Bug reports with
[plugin]tag - API Reference - Backend endpoints (when running locally)
We welcome & appreciate contributions. See Contributing Guidelines and Project Roadmap.
- Plugin Development Quick Start Guide - Start building plugins
- Plugin Template - Boilerplate
- Lifecycle Manager Primers - Customization primers
- Service Bridge Examples - working examples and up to date documentation
- Frontend Documentation - React application details
- Backend Documentation - Python API details
- Full Documentation Index - Links to all repos and corresponding documentation.
Licensed under the MIT License. Your AI. Your Rules.