Manus Launches My Computer Desktop App to Let AI Control Your PC

Manus, the AI agent platform now owned by Meta, has launched "My Computer" — a desktop application that lets its AI agent interact directly with your local files, tools, and applications. The app works on both macOS and Windows and bridges the gap between cloud-based AI and your personal computer.

How It Works

Through the Manus Desktop app, the AI agent executes command line instructions in your computer's terminal. This allows it to read, analyze, and edit local files, as well as launch and control applications installed on your machine. The approach is simple but powerful — the command line enables a vast range of automated actions from file organization to full application development.

Real-World Use Cases

Manus showcases several practical scenarios: a florist who needs thousands of unsorted photos organized into categorized folders, an accountant renaming hundreds of invoices to a standard format, or a developer who wants to build a complete Mac app without opening Xcode. In one demo, Manus built a real-time meeting translation app in Swift entirely through terminal commands in about twenty minutes.

Your Idle GPU Gets a Job

The app also unlocks idle computing resources. You can have Manus use your local GPU to train machine learning models or run large language models. That Mac mini sitting in the corner becomes a 24/7 AI assistant — you can assign tasks from your phone while you are out, and Manus quietly completes the work on your machine at home.

Security Controls

Every terminal command requires explicit approval before execution. Users can choose "Always Allow" for trusted tasks or "Allow Once" to review each operation individually. My Computer also integrates with Manus's Projects, Agents, and Scheduled Tasks features for recurring automation like tidying downloads folders or generating weekly reports.

The Bottom Line

The concept is genuinely useful — bridging cloud AI with local compute is the obvious next step. But giving an AI agent terminal access to your computer is a security tightrope. The "Always Allow" option is convenient but concerning: most users will enable it without thinking, effectively giving Meta's AI unrestricted access to run any command on their machine. The permission model is a good start, but the real test will be whether users understand what they are approving. Available now for macOS and Windows.