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BloksHermes Agent

Checked 6 November 2026 · Sources

Bloks vs Hermes Agent

Hermes Agent is an MIT licensed agent with its own runtime, reached from a terminal, a desktop app or 28 chat apps. Bloks is a desktop app that runs the coding agents you already use, with undo, a team you can see and an iPhone app.

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The short answer

Which one is for you

Choose Bloks ifOur pick

  • You already use Claude Code, Codex or Cursor and want your agents to run on them and on your existing plan.
  • You want undo on by default, and conversations you can rewind or branch.
  • You want a team you can watch work: rooms, a lead, and agents that ask before they hire help.
  • You want an iPhone and Apple Watch app, not a phone browser.
  • You are on an Intel Mac.

Choose Hermes Agent if

  • You want an agent with its own runtime that writes and refines its own skills.
  • You want to reach it from 28 chat platforms, with voice replies on many.
  • You want cloud sandboxes such as Modal, Daytona or Vercel Sandbox as places to run.
  • You want an MIT licence and Nous Portal's single subscription for hundreds of models.

At a glance

Topic by topic

Bloks ahead · 5Even · 6Hermes Agent ahead · 3

Topic
What it isA desktop app for Mac, Windows and Linux. Each agent is a contact; a team is a room.An agent with its own runtime, used from a terminal, a desktop app or chat apps through one gateway.
EnginesRuns Claude Code, Codex, Gemini CLI, Cursor, Cline, OpenCode, Pi, Grok and more, plus any OpenAI-compatible host.BetterIts own runtime on Nous Portal, OpenRouter, OpenAI or custom endpoints. It does not drive coding agents like Claude Code.
Your existing planRuns on the Claude or ChatGPT plan behind your Claude Code or Codex sign-in.BetterYour own keys, or a Nous Portal plan.
Desktop appMac (Apple silicon and Intel), Windows and Linux.BetterMac (Apple silicon only), Windows and Linux.
UndoOn for every agent: undo any change to your files, rewind a conversation, or branch it.BetterCheckpoints with rollback, off by default and not taken in container backends.
SafetyAgents ask before acting unless you choose otherwise; rules in a sentence.Approvals where a helper model rates risk by default, a manual mode, and a hard blocklist.
MemoryMarkdown files you can read and edit: MEMORY.md, up to 200 lines read every turn, and a folder of notes looked up by topic.Small Markdown files (around 2,200 and 1,375 characters), editable, with optional outside memory services.
Teams of agentsRooms with a lead who speaks last; agents message each other and hire help with your yes.Profiles shown as bots in group chats that mention each other, plus subagents.
PeopleWorkspaces with members and admins, invited by link or QR code.Sharing through chat apps with admin and user tiers.
Chat appsTelegram, Signal, Slack, Discord, WhatsApp groups and email.28 platforms, including Teams and SMS, with voice replies on many.Better
PhoneAn iPhone and Apple Watch app, at home or anywhere with Bloks Cloud.BetterNo phone app; a web app in a phone browser, or chat apps.
Where agents runYour machine, a Docker container or another machine over SSH, a server of yours, or managed hosting.Your machine, Docker, SSH, and cloud sandboxes (Modal, Daytona, Vercel Sandbox).Better
PriceFree with your own AI. Paid plans add reach from anywhere, people and an included AI.Free with your own keys; Nous Portal plans add models and hosting.
LicenceSource available (FSL): free for any use except selling Bloks; each release becomes MIT after two years.MIT.Better

Engines: your coding agents, or its own

BloksBetter

Bloks does not replace the AI tools you use. Each agent picks an engine, Claude Code, Codex, Gemini CLI, Cursor, Cline, OpenCode, Pi and more, and runs on the sign-in you already have, so a Claude or ChatGPT plan you pay for is the plan your agents use. An agent can switch engine from a dropdown, and a backup engine takes over when one runs out.

Settings, Engines and keys in Bloks: Claude Code connected, the other engines one button away

Hermes Agent

Hermes Agent is its own agent. It talks to models directly, through Nous Portal, OpenRouter, OpenAI or any compatible endpoint, and its docs are clear that it does not drive coding agents like Claude Code. If you want one runtime that improves its own skills over time, that is the point of it.

Undo and safety

BloksBetter

Every agent in Bloks can be undone: any change it made to your files, a conversation rewound to an earlier point, or branched from any answer to try another way. Agents ask before acting unless you say otherwise, and you can write rules in a sentence.

A changes card in Bloks: the files an agent changed, each one with Undo

Hermes Agent

Hermes Agent has thoughtful approvals: by default a helper model rates how risky a command is, with a manual mode and a blocklist that is always on, and it strips secrets from the processes it starts. Its checkpoints and rollback are off by default and are not taken when it works in a container.

Reaching your agents

Bloks

The iPhone and Apple Watch app is the main way in when you are away from your desk, on your own network or anywhere with Bloks Cloud, sealed end to end. Agents also answer on Telegram and Signal, in Slack, Discord and WhatsApp groups, and by email.

The Bloks iPhone app with your agents listed

Hermes Agent

Hermes Agent's gateway reaches 28 chat platforms, from Telegram and WhatsApp to Teams and SMS, with spoken replies on many and Discord voice channels. It has no phone app of its own; on a phone you use those chat apps or its web app in a browser.

Switching

Bring your Hermes Agent agents across in a minute

Bloks reads a Hermes setup from ~/.hermes: its memories, skills and settings, and shows you each item before anything is added. Keys and passwords are never copied unless you say so, and the whole import can be undone.

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Meet your team in a minute

Free with the AI you already use. Your agents, their memory and their work stay on your machine.

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Questions

Bloks and Hermes Agent: questions

Is Bloks a Hermes Agent alternative?

Yes. Both keep agents and their memory on your machine. Bloks runs the coding agents you already use, with undo on by default and an iPhone app; Hermes Agent is its own runtime with the widest chat reach.

Can I move from Hermes Agent to Bloks?

Yes. Settings, Data, Bring your setup reads ~/.hermes and lists its memories and skills, and adds only what you tick. It can be undone.

Can Bloks use Claude Code or Codex? Can Hermes?

Bloks runs Claude Code, Codex and other coding agents as engines, on your existing sign-in. Hermes Agent's docs say it uses its own runtime and does not drive them.

Does either have a phone app?

Bloks has an iPhone and Apple Watch app. Hermes Agent has no phone app; it is reached on a phone through chat apps or its web app in a browser.

Which is free?

Both are free with your own AI. Hermes Agent is MIT licensed, with optional Nous Portal plans. Bloks is free for any use except selling it, with paid plans for reach, people and an included AI.

Sources

Every claim about Hermes Agent on this page was checked against its own pages on 6 November 2026. Products change: if something here is out of date, tell us at bloks.dev/support and we will fix it.

  1. Hermes Agent on GitHub (README, licence)
  2. Hermes Agent releases
  3. hermes-agent.nousresearch.com (plans)
  4. Docs: desktop app
  5. Docs: security
  6. Docs: memory
  7. Docs: cron
  8. Docs: profiles
  9. Docs: tools
  10. Docs: messaging
  11. Docs: checkpoints and rollback

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