Hermes Agent: the practical guide
Guides, comparisons and lessons from daily business use. Written by someone who has run his own AI system on Hermes since version 0.12.
In short
Hermes Agent is an open-source AI agent by Nous Research. It runs in the terminal, as a desktop app and in more than 20 messengers, remembers knowledge across chats and turns completed tasks into skills it reuses next time. You choose the language model behind it.
Where do you want to go?
Everything about Hermes Agent in one place.
Install Hermes Agent
Desktop app, Linux, Mac, Windows, servers and Docker. Every command ready to copy.
Read more ComparisonHermes Agent vs. OpenClaw
The two big open-source agents side by side, plus moving from OpenClaw in one command.
Read more PluginsOur Hermes plugins
Our own extensions, one of them in the official Nous Research catalog.
Read more PracticeWhen to start a new chat
Why long chats get worse and how to hand over cleanly.
Read moreWhat Hermes Agent can do
Remembers
Hermes keeps track of who you are, how you work and what went wrong last time. Its memory carries across every chat.
Learns
When Hermes solves a task, it saves the procedure as a skill and loads it next time. It gets better at your business week by week.
Is reachable everywhere
The same agent runs in the terminal, in the desktop app and in more than 20 messengers, including Telegram, WhatsApp, Slack, Teams and email.
Works on a schedule
Scheduled tasks run on their own: the Monday report, the 7 a.m. server check, the evening inbox summary.
Takes any model
Claude, GPT, Gemini, DeepSeek or a local model. Switch models without rebuilding the agent.
Extends easily
Plugins from the official catalog, MCP servers and profiles for separate agents. One profile for sales, one for bookkeeping.
Hermes fits when ...
- ✓you want an agent that keeps working for you, not just a chat window
- ✓it should remember your projects, rules and preferences
- ✓you want to reach it via Telegram, WhatsApp or email
- ✓you don't want to be tied to one model provider
Something else fits better when ...
- ·you only code inside an editor: Claude Code or Codex will do.
- ·a process is always the same and needs no decisions: a fixed n8n workflow is cheaper and more predictable.
- ·you never want to touch a terminal or maintain anything: have it set up for you (see below).
From practice
How I use Hermes myself
My AI system B.R.A.I.N. has run on Hermes Agent since February 2026, version 0.12 back then, on my own server. Today it handles around 100 scheduled tasks: blog posts in several languages, server monitoring, Search Console reports and replies to inquiries.
Not everything runs smoothly. Updates sometimes change defaults: with 0.22, for example, Hermes started deleting old chats automatically. That's why I test every update before installing it.
A new Hermes video comes out every Sunday on YouTube (in German).
Have Hermes Agent set up for you
We build Hermes into B.R.A.I.N. for you: tailored to your daily business with email, calendar and knowledge, on managed hosting at Mittwald in Germany. The server and the data belong to you. Updates on request.
FAQ
What is Hermes Agent?
Hermes Agent is an open-source AI agent by Nous Research under the MIT license. It runs in the terminal, as a desktop app and in more than 20 messengers, remembers knowledge across chats and turns completed tasks into reusable skills. It works with almost any language model, from Claude and GPT to local models.
Is Hermes Agent free?
The software is free and open source (MIT license). You pay for the language model, either per use through an API such as OpenRouter or through a subscription such as Nous Portal, and for a server if Hermes should run around the clock.
How is Hermes Agent different from ChatGPT?
ChatGPT is a chat in a provider's cloud. Hermes is an agent that runs on your own computer or server, executes commands, edits files, works through scheduled tasks and answers in your messengers. You choose the model behind it.
Can I change the language of Hermes Agent?
Yes. The interface ships in 17 languages; set one with hermes config set display.language followed by the language code, for example de for German. The agent itself replies in the language you write in.
Is MadeByBrain an official Nous Research partner?
No. This page is unofficial and not sponsored by Nous Research. We have used Hermes Agent every day since February 2026 and build B.R.A.I.N., our AI system for business owners, on top of it.
As of Oct 25, 2026, Hermes Agent v0.22.5. Sources: documentation at hermes-agent.nousresearch.com and github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent. Unofficial, not sponsored by Nous Research. Hermes Agent is a project by Nous Research.