ego-lite

Open source alternative to Browserbase, Bright Data and ScraperAPI

18.1K stars
MIT
Active this week
Last commit 2 days ago

Last verified Oct 20, 2026

Automate browser tasks with AI agents sharing your Chrome logins and sessions. MIT-licensed, free, with parallel execution and zero config.

Visit website GitHub18.1K

Read the full breakdownWho it is for, how it works, trade-offs, the quick start and the FAQ

who it's for

Who ego-lite is for#

AI developers automating authenticated web tasks

Developers using Claude Code, Codex, or Cursor who need agents to interact with services requiring a login: CRM back offices, SaaS admin panels, social media accounts, or internal tools behind SSO. ego-lite's shared state means the agent picks up the active session rather than starting from scratch.

Skip if:

Skip if your automation targets only public pages with no authentication requirements. A lightweight headless browser or simple HTTP scraper is simpler and faster for unauthenticated public content.

Teams running parallel lead enrichment or research tasks

Teams that need an AI agent to process a list of leads, competitors, or data sources in parallel across multiple browser sessions. Each target runs in its own Space, so 10 simultaneous tasks do not collide and finish together rather than sequentially.

Skip if:

Skip if your task list is small or if the sources are accessible via public APIs. The parallel Spaces model adds the most value for larger batches of authenticated or dynamic-content targets.

Developers replacing Browserbase or ScraperAPI with a local alternative

Builders who currently pay for a managed browser automation service and want to cut that cost. ego-lite runs on the developer's own machine, uses their own identity, and charges nothing per session. The ego-browser skill replaces the managed API layer for tasks that do not need a cloud runtime.

Skip if:

Skip if your automation runs on a remote server or CI pipeline without a macOS host. ego-lite requires the desktop application on a local Mac and does not currently offer a server-side mode.

the problem

The problem it solves#

AI agents that automate browser tasks typically run inside a blank, headless Chromium instance. That means every task begins from a logged-out state: the agent has to navigate login pages, solve CAPTCHAs, handle two-factor authentication, and work around SSO redirects before it can do anything useful. On sites that use Stripe, Salesforce, Intercom, or other embedded widgets, headless approaches often fail entirely because the tools that build page snapshots from JavaScript shims cannot reach cross-origin iframes or shadow DOM elements.

The parallel coordination problem is just as painful: when an agent controls a browser through a framework like Playwright, it takes over the window. You cannot keep working in your own tabs while the agent runs a task. Most automation frameworks were built for scripted pipelines, not for sharing a browser with a human in real time. That leads to a choice between letting the agent interrupt your work session or maintaining a separate second browser just for automation, which defeats the purpose of having an integrated AI agent.

how ego-lite solves it

How it solves it#

Shared Chrome state for AI agents

ego-lite imports your bookmarks, cookies, login sessions, extensions, and browser profiles from Chrome in one click. AI agents run inside their own Space and inherit the same logged-in state, so they can reach Gmail, Notion, LinkedIn, Salesforce, and any other service you are already authenticated with. No re-authentication per task.

Parallel Spaces for multitasking

Each agent or task gets its own Space: an isolated workspace inside the same browser window. Claude Code can enrich leads in 10 parallel Spaces while Codex scrapes competitor sites in 5 more, without colliding with each other or with your tabs. Your mouse and focus stay where you left them.

ego-browser skill for any agent

ego-browser is the connection layer between ego-lite and any agent that runs shell commands: Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Continue, Gemini CLI, Hermes Agent, and custom in-house agents. It exposes browser actions as in-page JavaScript tools. Agents write a snippet composing several steps, and ego-browser runs it in one pass instead of one tool call at a time.

Kernel-level Chromium snapshot engine

Unlike JavaScript shims layered on stock Chrome, ego-lite's semantic snapshot is built into a custom Chromium engine at the kernel level. Snapshots reach into cross-origin iframes, shadow DOM, and third-party SDK widgets like Stripe, Salesforce, and React portals. Ref actions run more reliably and return fewer tokens than raw HTML.

Faster task completion on fewer tokens

ego-lite runs multiple in-page actions as a few lines of JavaScript instead of sequential tool calls. Complex browser tasks finish up to 2.5x faster than agent-browser with substantially fewer tokens, per benchmarks the team published against Vercel's agent-browser on four complex tasks.

strengths · trade-offs

Strengths and trade-offs#

Strengths

Zero cost with local data storageego-lite is free to download with no per-session or per-request pricing. All browsing data, cookies, and login sessions stay on your machine. Unlike Browserbase or ScraperAPI, there is no API key to manage, no per-task billing, and no third party that can see the sessions your agent uses.
Works with any agent through a single skill installInstall ego-browser once with npx and every agent on that machine can drive the browser. There is no SDK to integrate, no provider lock-in, and no requirement to run a specific LLM. Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, and custom agents all work through the same skill interface.
No login friction or CAPTCHA interruptionsBecause ego-lite shares your real Chrome identity, the agent inherits your existing sessions. It does not need to log in to each service from scratch, which eliminates CAPTCHA challenges, 2FA prompts, and SSO redirect failures that headless browser automation consistently hits.
MIT license on the open source repositoryThe ego-lite GitHub repository is MIT licensed, so you can inspect the code, fork it, and build on it commercially with no restrictions. The browser itself is a separate free download. MIT licensing means no AGPL copyleft concern if you embed or extend the skill layer.

Trade-offs

-macOS only; Windows and Linux not yet availableego-lite runs on macOS (Apple Silicon and Intel). Windows and Linux are listed on the roadmap but not yet available. Teams that work primarily on Linux servers or Windows machines cannot use ego-lite until cross-platform support ships.
-Reusable skills feature is not yet availableThe README lists experience accumulation (reusable skills that distill successful actions for faster future runs) as a coming-soon feature. Tasks cannot currently benefit from learned patterns, so the agent rebuilds context from scratch on each run.
-106 open issues as of August 2026The repository has 106 open issues. Shipped in April 2026, the project is actively iterating and some edge-case behaviours may not yet be resolved. Check current issue status before integrating ego-lite into critical workflows.

versus alternatives

ego-lite vs alternatives#

ego-lite vs Browserbase

Browserbase is a managed cloud service that provides AI agents with isolated browser sessions through a proprietary API. ego-lite is the free, local alternative: the agent uses your actual Chrome identity rather than a clean cloud instance.

The key difference is session state. Browserbase starts each session from scratch, so agents must handle authentication, CAPTCHA, and SSO in every run. ego-lite inherits your existing logins from the first use, so those authentication steps never occur. For tasks that require access to authenticated services you use daily, that single difference eliminates a significant source of task failures.

Browserbase is the better fit when you need browser automation to run on a remote server or in a CI pipeline without a macOS host. ego-lite runs locally on your Mac and does not offer a cloud-hosted mode.

Feature	ego-lite	Browserbase
License	MIT (repo)	Proprietary
Cost	Free	Paid (per session)
Session state	Inherits your Chrome identity	Fresh session per run
Self-hosting	Local Mac app	Managed cloud
Login friction	None	Must handle each run
Platform	macOS	Cloud (any host)

ego-lite vs Bright Data

Bright Data is a commercial web data platform providing proxies, browser APIs, and scraping tools at scale. Its core value is access to residential and datacenter proxies for scraping public data without IP blocks. ego-lite does not provide proxy services and is not a data collection platform for large-scale public web scraping.

For tasks requiring authenticated access to services you already use, ego-lite is the more direct fit. Bright Data excels when the goal is scraping public pages at scale from many IP addresses, which is a different problem from sharing your personal browser state with an agent.

Feature	ego-lite	Bright Data
License	MIT (repo)	Proprietary
Cost	Free	Paid (per GB / per request)
Primary use	Agent browser with auth state	Proxy network and scraping API
Scale	Single machine, parallel Spaces	Cloud-scale distributed requests

ego-lite vs ScraperAPI

ScraperAPI is a paid HTTP proxy API for scraping public websites. It handles JavaScript rendering and IP rotation for fetching public page content. ego-lite is an agent browser for interacting with authenticated services: clicking, filling, navigating, and reading behind a login.

If your scraping target is a public page with no authentication, ScraperAPI is a simpler tool: send an HTTP request, get back the rendered HTML. ego-lite adds value when the agent needs to be logged in, perform actions across multiple pages, or run parallel sessions in isolated workspaces.

Feature	ego-lite	ScraperAPI
License	MIT (repo)	Proprietary
Cost	Free	Paid (per request)
Authentication	Full (inherits your sessions)	None
Interaction	Click, fill, navigate, read	HTTP fetch only
Platform	macOS desktop	Cloud API

install · quick start

Quick start#

bash

Install ego-lite by cloning the repository; the ego-browser skill source and setup references are included. Download the macOS browser app from the releases page.
```bash
git clone https://github.com/citrolabs/ego-lite
```

tech stack · detected from GitHub

What it's built on#

Languages: JavaScriptTypeScript
Tooling: esbuildRollup

frequently asked

FAQ#

Is ego-lite free to use?

Yes. ego-lite is a free macOS download with no subscription, no per-session pricing, and no API key required. The GitHub repository is MIT licensed. The only cost is the machine it runs on, which is typically the developer's existing computer.

Which AI agents work with ego-lite?

Any agent that can run a shell command works with ego-lite through the ego-browser skill. Confirmed compatible agents include Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Continue, Gemini CLI, Hermes Agent, and OpenClaw. Custom in-house agents that execute shell tools also work without any additional SDK integration.

Does ego-lite work on Windows or Linux?

Not yet. ego-lite currently runs on macOS (both Apple Silicon and Intel). Windows and Linux support are on the roadmap. The ego-browser skill can be installed via npx on any platform, but the browser application itself requires macOS.

How does ego-lite handle my login sessions and private data?

All browsing data stays on your computer. ego-lite does not upload your cookies, passwords, browsing history, or agent session data to any external server. The only thing recorded during setup is whether you chose to migrate Chrome data.

How is ego-lite different from Playwright or Puppeteer?

Playwright and Puppeteer are browser automation libraries that drive pages through CSS selectors against a separate browser instance. ego-lite is a real daily-use browser that your agent shares with you. The ego-browser skill exposes in-page JavaScript tools (snapshot, fill, click, navigate, capture) rather than selector-based commands, and runs multiple steps in one pass. There is no separate browser to install or configure.

also worth a look

Similar open-source tools#

PyScrappy

Alternative toFirecrawl

AI-native web scraping toolkit + MCP server

263 GitHub stars
Licence MIT

Agent Reach

Featured

Alternative toFirecrawl

Give any AI agent internet access, free and local

100,165 GitHub stars
Licence MIT

agent-browser

Alternative toBrowserbase

Browser automation CLI with ref-based snapshots for AI agents

44,324 GitHub stars
Licence Apache-2.0

camofox-browser

Alternative toBrowserbase

Stealth headless browser for AI agents; bypasses bot detection

11,747 GitHub stars
Licence MIT

browser

Alternative toBrowserbase

Headless browser for AI agents: 9x faster than Chrome, built in Zig

36,787 GitHub stars
Licence AGPL-3.0

crawl4ai

Alternative toFirecrawl

LLM-ready web crawling without API keys or rate limits

85,984 GitHub stars
Licence Apache-2.0

by category

Open source tools in these categories#

404

12,712 GitHub stars
Licence AGPL-3.0
#Email

Omnara

Alternative toClaude Managed Agents

Open-source agent deployment API. Self-host or use Omnara Cloud.

2,957 GitHub stars
Licence Apache-2.0
#AI Agents

rakazo

Alternative toGrok Bot

AI teammates you own: your keys, your model, your machine.

4,904 GitHub stars
Licence Apache-2.0
#AI Agents

Feature your project

The projects we add and every new guide. Free, unsubscribe any time.

Find open source alternatives to paid software

ego-lite vs Browserbase

Feature	ego-lite	Browserbase
License	MIT (repo)	Proprietary
Cost	Free	Paid (per session)
Session state	Inherits your Chrome identity	Fresh session per run
Self-hosting	Local Mac app	Managed cloud
Login friction	None	Must handle each run
Platform	macOS	Cloud (any host)

ego-lite vs Bright Data

Feature	ego-lite	Bright Data
License	MIT (repo)	Proprietary
Cost	Free	Paid (per GB / per request)
Primary use	Agent browser with auth state	Proxy network and scraping API
Scale	Single machine, parallel Spaces	Cloud-scale distributed requests

ego-lite vs ScraperAPI

Feature	ego-lite	ScraperAPI
License	MIT (repo)	Proprietary
Cost	Free	Paid (per request)
Authentication	Full (inherits your sessions)	None
Interaction	Click, fill, navigate, read	HTTP fetch only
Platform	macOS desktop	Cloud API

Who ego-lite is for#

AI developers automating authenticated web tasks

Skip if:

Teams running parallel lead enrichment or research tasks

Skip if:

Developers replacing Browserbase or ScraperAPI with a local alternative

Skip if:

The problem it solves#

How it solves it#

Shared Chrome state for AI agents

Parallel Spaces for multitasking

ego-browser skill for any agent

Kernel-level Chromium snapshot engine

Faster task completion on fewer tokens

Strengths and trade-offs#

Strengths

Trade-offs

ego-lite vs alternatives#

ego-lite vs Browserbase

ego-lite vs Bright Data

ego-lite vs ScraperAPI

Quick start#

What it's built on#

FAQ#

Similar open-source tools#

Open source tools in these categories#

AI & Machine Learning

Developer Tools

Web Development

Find open source alternatives to paid software

Who ego-lite is for#

AI developers automating authenticated web tasks

Skip if:

Teams running parallel lead enrichment or research tasks

Skip if:

Developers replacing Browserbase or ScraperAPI with a local alternative

Skip if:

The problem it solves#

How it solves it#

Shared Chrome state for AI agents

Parallel Spaces for multitasking

ego-browser skill for any agent

Kernel-level Chromium snapshot engine

Faster task completion on fewer tokens

Strengths and trade-offs#

Strengths

Trade-offs

ego-lite vs alternatives#

ego-lite vs Browserbase

ego-lite vs Bright Data

ego-lite vs ScraperAPI

Quick start#

What it's built on#

FAQ#

Similar open-source tools#

Open source tools in these categories#

AI & Machine Learning

Developer Tools

Web Development

Find open source alternatives to paid software