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Install the Desktop App

Axon Desktop is a native menu-bar app that embeds the same daemon + dashboard as the CLI. If you'd rather not live in a terminal, this is the way.

macOS​

  1. Grab the latest release matching your CPU:
    • Apple Silicon (M1/M2/M3/M4): Axon-x.y.z-arm64.dmg
    • Intel: Axon-x.y.z-x64.dmg
  2. Open the .dmg → drag Axon to Applications.
  3. First launch only: the build is unsigned, so macOS Gatekeeper will block it.
    • Right-click Axon.app in Applications → Open → click Open in the dialog.
    • OR: System Settings → Privacy & Security → scroll to the Axon notice → Open Anyway.
  4. Subsequent launches work normally.
Why unsigned?

Code signing + Apple notarization will land in v1.0. The unsigned build is functionally identical — Gatekeeper just doesn't have a cert to verify against. See the security model for why Axon's design doesn't rely on app signing for trust.

Windows​

  1. Download Axon-Setup-x.y.z.exe from the releases page.
  2. SmartScreen will warn about an "unrecognized app" — click More info → Run anyway.
  3. Installer drops the app in %LOCALAPPDATA%\axon-desktop and adds a Start Menu shortcut.

Linux​

Debian / Ubuntu​

wget https://github.com/Strykr-Labs/Axon-Agent-Trading/releases/latest/download/axon-desktop_x.y.z_amd64.deb
sudo dpkg -i axon-desktop_x.y.z_amd64.deb

Fedora / RHEL​

sudo rpm -i axon-desktop-x.y.z.x86_64.rpm

Launch via the Applications menu or axon-desktop from the shell.

No auto-update on Linux

update.electronjs.org doesn't serve Linux. Subscribe to GitHub Releases or apt/dnf upgrade manually.

First-launch experience​

The first time you launch Axon Desktop, it:

  1. Boots the embedded daemon in-process (~3 seconds)
  2. Opens the dashboard window at http://127.0.0.1:47890/
  3. Drops a tray icon in your menu bar (top-right on macOS)
  4. If it's a brand-new machine: kicks off the onboarding wizard to create your keystore + recovery phrase

The wizard is the same as axon init — minimum 12-char password, 24-word BIP-39 recovery phrase, optional MCP runtime auto-config.

After install​

  • Tray icon — click it for the menu (Open Dashboard, Status, Mode, Quit)
  • Close the window (⌘W / red dot) — daemon stays alive, app continues running in tray
  • Quit cleanly — Tray menu → Quit Axon (stops the daemon, releases the lock)
  • Auto-update — checks every 6 hours; you'll get a native notification when there's a new version

CLI + Desktop together?​

You can have both installed. But only one daemon at a time — they both bind to port 47890 and acquire the same ~/.axon/daemon.pid lock. If the desktop app is running and you try axon from a terminal, you'll get a clean DaemonLockHeld error. Quit the desktop app first.

Next​

→ Connect your AI agent — auto-configure your AI runtime to talk to the running daemon.