install

Additional install commands

macOS

Homebrewverified · 100%

brew install nullclaw

local Homebrew formula metadata

overview

Package summary

Tiny autonomous AI assistant infrastructure written in Zig

Project links

Commands and aliases

nullclaw

history

Project history and usage

NullClaw is a Zig-based autonomous AI assistant runtime packaged as a small single-binary tool. Its public materials emphasize low memory use, fast startup, provider agnosticism, and running agent infrastructure on inexpensive or resource-constrained machines.

Project history

GitHub's repository API reports that nullclaw/nullclaw was created on February 16, 2026. That makes it a very young project in package-history terms, so there is not enough independent history to treat it like a long-established ecosystem component.

The repository README frames the project as '100% Zig' assistant infrastructure with a 678 KB binary, roughly 1 MB RAM use, and startup under 2 ms. Those are project claims from the official repository, not independently benchmarked adoption facts.

Adoption history

NullClaw's visible adoption is early but unusually loud for a 2026 repository. The GitHub API reported 7,736 stars and 907 forks on July 1, 2026, while the Homebrew formula showed stable version 2026.5.29 and 1,661 installs over its visible 365-day analytics window.

The official docs focus on a source-build path with Zig, Git, and an LLM provider API key, followed by `nullclaw onboard`, `nullclaw agent`, `status`, `doctor`, and `capabilities --json`. That indicates adoption is aimed at agent-runtime experimenters and self-hosting users rather than a mature enterprise distribution channel.

How it is used

Practical use begins by building or installing the `nullclaw` binary, onboarding a provider such as OpenRouter, OpenAI, or Anthropic, then running an agent message or gateway. The docs also describe web-channel pairing through `~/.nullclaw/config.json`, which turns it from a terminal-only agent into a runtime that can talk to a browser UI.

Package nerds would care about NullClaw as a counterpoint to Python/Node-heavy agent frameworks: it is distributed as a compiled Zig binary, it has minimal runtime assumptions, and its Homebrew formula depends on Zig only when building from source.

Why package nerds care

NullClaw is significant mostly as an early signal in AI-agent packaging: small native binaries and local runtimes are being used to package agent infrastructure. The history is too short for high confidence about durability.

Timeline

2026-02-16: GitHub repository created.
2026-05-29: Homebrew formula stable version visible as 2026.5.29.
2026-07-01: GitHub API reported 7,736 stars and 907 forks; Homebrew formula reported 1,661 installs over 365 days.

Related projects

NullHub
Zig
OpenRouter
OpenAI
Anthropic

Sources

security posture

Risk level: orange

formula declares a Homebrew service. infrastructure mutation or orchestration signal.

Risk classifier

orange risk · medium confidence · infrastructure

Why

formula declares a Homebrew service
infrastructure mutation or orchestration signal

Signals

metadata:service
text:infrastructure

Install behavior

No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
Formula metadata declares a service or daemon block.
Homebrew bottle metadata is available for 6 platform targets.
Build metadata lists 1 build dependencies.

Recommended review

Before unattended agent use, check whether the tool reads plaintext credentials, writes remote state, publishes artifacts, or shells out to plugins.

local files

Configuration and credential file locations

These source-backed paths show where this package keeps local settings or durable credentials. Automic Vault can use them as review targets for secret scanning, migration, and command approval.

Configuration files

Config paths the tool may read or write during local use.

Unix: ~/.nullclaw/config.json

Credential files

Credential-bearing paths to review before unattended agent runs.

Unix: ~/.nullclaw/config.json

executables

Installed executables

Command	Kind	Exposure	Note
`nullclaw`	cli	global executable

freshness

Version and freshness

These signals separate page generation age, package-manager activity, and upstream release comparison. Version lag is warned only when an evidence URL and comparable versions are present.

page generated2026-07-08

manager version2026.5.29

manager updated2026-06-14

local dataok

upstreamcurrent

latest detectedv2026.5.29

https://github.com/nullclaw/nullclaw

okNo freshness warnings were generated.

install metadata

Package metadata

Package key	brew:nullclaw
Version	2026.5.29
Package manager	Homebrew
Package manager page	https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/nullclaw
Homepage	https://nullclaw.io
Repository	https://github.com/nullclaw/nullclaw
Upstream docs	https://nullclaw.io/nullclaw/docs/getting-started
License	MIT
Source archive	https://github.com/nullclaw/nullclaw/archive/refs/tags/v2026.5.29.tar.gz
Last updated	2026-06-14T14:13:23-04:00
Pulse	updated
Build dependencies	zig
Bottle	available (on arm64_linux, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, sonoma, x86_64_linux)
Homebrew post-install	not defined
Service	declared

registry facts

Source database details

Source Database	Homebrew formula API
Tap	homebrew/core
Full Name	nullclaw
Version Scheme	0
Revision	0
Head Version	HEAD
Bottle Stable Root URL	https://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core
Deprecated	no
Disabled	no
Keg Only	no
URL Keys	head stable

package graph

Links come from deterministic package relationships, av.db category and tag curation, ecosystem matches, and package hub membership.

source trail

Generated from repository data

This page is generated by av-web from the private package SQLite artifact built by scripts/generate-pkg-sqlite.py.

Combined YAML source

View the package source record on GitHub.

combined/nullclaw.yml

Used sources

Geiger risk classifier
Nucleus package database
av.db category and tag curation
cross-ecosystem install command graph
curated configuration and credential file locations
curated package history
package relationship graph
package version freshness
package-page enrichment

Install nullclaw with Homebrew