For home servers
Your home server can do more than media and backups.
Most home-server lists stop at media, photos and passwords. Ion adds the apps you use every day: at launch, habits, calories, training, recipes, groceries, tasks and invoicing. They are open source, run on a Mac or Linux computer you own, share data only through permissions you approve, and your own Claude or ChatGPT plan can change any of them.
What does Ion add to a home server?
Apps you open every day, not just services you set up once. Ion’s library at launch is 13 open-source, MIT-licensed apps, and they share what they know through connections you approve: Training moves your Calories target, Recipes sends the week’s shopping to Grocery, and Tasks picks up due dates from Ledger and Forge. Your own AI can answer questions across them and rewrite any of them on a draft you preview.
HabitsStreaks that fill themselves in when another app knows you did it.
CaloriesA daily target that moves with your training.
TrainingWorkouts, sets and personal records.
RecipesPlan the week’s meals and send the list to Grocery.
GroceryOne list for the week, built from what you’re cooking.
TasksPersonal lists and shared ones, with due dates from your other apps.
LedgerInvoices, payouts and expenses, and who still owes you.
PipelineDeals and follow-ups. Your AI drafts the nudges; nothing is sent without you.
ForgeA print queue for your 3D printer.
Already run an agent on a Mac mini?
A chat agent is good at conversation, but it has nothing structured of yours to work on: no lists, logs or budgets. Ion turns the same Mac mini into the home for real apps, like a food log, a training log, recipes, a grocery list, tasks and invoices, which your own AI can read and change through connections you approve.
If you already run an agent on one, Ion gives it real apps to work with.
How is this different from Umbrel or CasaOS?
Self-hosted app installers put separate apps on your computer. Ion’s apps also know about each other: install Training and your calorie target moves with your workouts, and Recipes sends what you need to Grocery. Your own AI can answer across them and rewrite any of them, and you can share a single app by email with someone who installs nothing.
What hardware do I need?
Nothing new. Ion runs on a Mac or Linux computer that can stay on and online, so the machine you already run as a home server is a good start. There’s no published minimum spec.
- Ideal
A Mac mini. Quiet, low-power, built to stay on. If you already run an agent on one, Ion gives it real apps to work with.
- Works
An old laptop or desktop. Any Mac, or a Linux box. If it can stay plugged in and online, it can run your apps.
- Not needed
A new machine, a rack, or a cloud bill.
A Claude or ChatGPT plan. Ion uses the plan you already pay for.
What you don’t need: a new computer, a domain to get started, a credit card for Ion, or a second AI subscription.
How do I reach it from my phone without opening ports?
Over a private network, not a forwarded port. Ion starts in private mode: your devices reach your computer over Tailscale, encrypted end to end, from anywhere, with no domain and nothing opened to the internet. When you want to invite someone outside that network, the wizard adds a private, access-controlled link through Cloudflare, which needs a Cloudflare account and a domain.
Is it safe to run Ion at home?
It’s built so every app can only do what you say it can. Your apps and their data stay on your computer, each app reads another’s data only through a connection you approved and can revoke, and you sign in to your AI on Anthropic’s or OpenAI’s own page.
- Stored on your computer.
- Every app in its own container.
- Every cross-app read is logged.
- Ion never holds your AI credentials.
How Ion keeps your data safe →
Ion is early software, provided without warranty. Self-hosting means you’re the administrator.
Home server questions
What are the best self-hosted apps to run in 2026?
It depends on what you want the server to do. Most lists start with media, photos, passwords and backups, and they are worth running. What those lists rarely cover are the apps you use every day. Ion’s library at launch fills that gap with open-source apps for habits, calories, training, recipes, groceries, tasks, invoices and deals, which share what they know through permissions you approve.
Is Ion a self-hosted AI assistant?
Not a chat assistant on its own. Ion runs your own Claude Code or Codex on your computer, signed in with your Claude or ChatGPT plan, and gives it real apps to work with. It answers questions across your apps through the connections you approved, when you ask and in the background for apps you allow. Usage counts against your own plan’s limits.
Can AI customise my self-hosted apps?
In Ion, yes. Tell your own AI what you’d do differently, in plain language, and it rewrites the app on a private draft. You try the draft and keep it only if you like it. Ion’s apps are open source, so the changed version is yours to keep.
Are there self-hosted apps the whole family can use?
Yes. Ion’s library at launch includes household apps like Recipes, Grocery and Tasks, and you can invite anyone to a single app by email. They get a link and a one-time code, install nothing, make no account, and see only the app you shared. Inviting people outside your own network needs a Cloudflare account and a domain, which Ion’s setup walks you through.
What can I do with a Mac mini home server?
Give it apps you use every day. A Mac mini is quiet, low-power and built to stay on, which makes it an ideal home for Ion: at launch, open-source apps for habits, calories, training, recipes, groceries, tasks, invoices and deals, which your own Claude or ChatGPT plan can answer across and change. You reach them from your phone over Tailscale, with no ports opened.
Have a home server? Get your invite.
Invite-only, released in small waves. Free during early access.