Know when it needs you.
Working, waiting for your permission, done or stuck: Claude Code and Codex, live in the notch. A soft sound when one needs you.
New in 1.5: see what Claude Code and Codex are doing, right in the notch
Halo
Your notch, put to work.
Even on screens without one.
Buy
Try it free for 3 days
$9.99 one-time. No subscription.
macOS 15 or later. Apple silicon and Intel.
That's Halo, up there. Hover it.
New in 1.5
Your AI agents, in the notch.
Every session, one tab.
The Agents tab lists each session with what it's doing, above your usage limits. Click one to jump to its terminal.
Liquid Glass.
Redesigned for macOS 26.1 The open island turns to glass; closed, it's still a notch.
Halo is a Dynamic Island for your Mac. It turns the notch, or the top of any screen without one, into a live home for your AI agents, your music, your day, your timers and your files. It stays out of sight until something happens. And on an external monitor, the brightness keys finally work.
Get the highlights.
Watch the filmOne island
Everything you need.
Nothing in the way.
Up to12 toolsin one island
Exactly0 accountsno sign-in, nothing personal sent
Just4.8 MBnative app for Apple silicon and Intel
Take a closer look.
Lock Screen
Your music, on the lock screen.
Play, pause, skip, or drag to any second, without unlocking. The card sits just above your picture, sized for every screen from a MacBook to an ultrawide.
Go on, drag the bar.
Off until you turn it on in Settings. Beta.
Wednesday 23 September9:41
Midnight City Lights (Extended Version)The Night Drivers
AAlexTouch ID or Enter Password
External monitors
Your monitor's brightness keys. Finally working.
macOS shows a HUD and changes nothing. Halo grows a notch on screens that have none, and its keys set the monitor's real backlight over DDC/CI,2 plus contrast and input switching from the island.
Press them, or use ← →.
Privacy. That's Halo.
Halo runs on your Mac and keeps to itself. No account to make, nothing to sign in to, nothing personal sent.
No account.
Download it, open it, done.
Nothing personal.
If you allow it, Halo sends anonymous usage counts once a day. Never your name, email, files or what you play.
A few connections, all yours.
Update checks and usage counts, only if you allow them. Lyrics lookups send just the song's title and artist.
Tech Specs
- Price
- $9.99. One-time purchase. No subscription. Free 3-day trial.
- Compatibility
- macOS 15 Sequoia or later. Liquid Glass design on macOS 26.
Apple silicon and Intel. - Screens
- MacBook notch, or a drawn island on any display without one.
Top, left or right edge. Every display or just one. - Monitor control
- Brightness, contrast and input over DDC/CI.2
- Now Playing
- Music, Spotify, and YouTube or any video in Safari and Chrome. Artwork, scrubber, controls, synced lyrics.
- Also in the island
- Volume and brightness HUDs, timers, today's calendar, file shelf with AirDrop, clipboard history, battery levels for your Mac, AirPods and Bluetooth devices, live Claude Code and Codex agent status and usage limits, a Focus and Break timer, microphone-in-use, camera mirror, keep awake.
- Updates
- Built-in, and only after you say yes.
Questions? Answers.
Do I need a MacBook with a notch?
No. On screens without one — external monitors, older Macs — Halo draws a slim island at the top, or on the left or right edge if you prefer.
Is Halo an alternative to Alcove or NotchNook?
Yes. It covers the same ground (now playing, volume and brightness, a file shelf) and adds control of your external monitor: brightness, contrast and input switching over DDC/CI. It also runs on screens that have no notch.
Which Macs does it run on?
macOS 15 Sequoia or later, on Apple silicon and Intel. Controlling an external monitor's brightness, contrast and input needs Apple silicon.
Does Halo collect any data?
Nothing personal. The app has no account. It connects to the internet for four things: checking for updates, only if you allow it; looking up lyrics for the playing song on LRCLIB (title and artist only; turn Lyrics off in Settings and it never does); activating your license key with Lemon Squeezy, once, when you enter it (the key and your Mac's name); and, if you leave “Share anonymous usage” on, sending usage to Umami: once a day, which features are on, how often the island opens and which tabs you use, plus a note when your trial starts, ends or you activate a key. That comes with a random ID and the app version, never your name, email, license key, files or what you listen to. Agent status reads Claude Code's and Codex's activity from files on your Mac; it never leaves it. Turn it off any time in Settings › General. This website counts visits with Umami, which uses no cookies and doesn't identify you.
macOS says it can't verify Halo. Is that normal?
For now, yes — Halo isn't notarized by Apple yet. The first time, open Halo, then go to System Settings → Privacy & Security and click Open Anyway. You only do this once.
Is there a free trial?
Yes. Download Halo and use everything free for 3 days, with no account and no card. When the trial ends, buy Halo and paste the license key from your purchase email. One key works on up to 3 Macs.
Is it a subscription?
No. You pay once: $9.99.
Will it get in the way of fullscreen apps?
No. The island hides itself in fullscreen video and games, and stays out of the menu bar's way.
Halo
A living island for every Mac screen.
$9.99
BuyOne-time purchase. macOS 15 or later. Apple silicon and Intel.