RowboatX - CLI Tool for Background Agents
- ✨ **Create background agents with full shell access**
- E.g. "Generate a NotebookLM-style podcast from my saved articles every morning"
- 🔧 **Connect any MCP server to add capabilities**
- Add MCP servers and RowboatX handles the integration
- 🎯 **Let RowboatX control and monitor your background agents**
- Easily inspect state on the filesystem
Inspired by Claude Code, RowboatX brings the same shell-native power to background automations.
## Quick start
1. Set your LLM API key. Supports OpenAI, Anthropic, Gemini, OpenRouter, LiteLLM, Ollama, and more.
```bash
export OPENAI_API_KEY=your-openai-api-key
```
2. Install RowboatX
```bash
npx @rowboatlabs/rowboatx
```
## Demo
[](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyPBinQzicY&t)
## Examples
### Add and Manage MCP servers
`$ rowboatx`
- Add MCP: 'Add this MCP server config: \ '
- Explore tools: 'What tools are there in \ '
### Create background agents
`$ rowboatx`
- 'Create agent to do X.'
- '... Attach the correct tools from \ to the agent'
- '... Allow the agent to run shell commands including ffmpeg'
### Schedule and monitor agents
`$ rowboatx`
- 'Make agent \ run every day at 10 AM'
- 'What agents do I have scheduled to run and at what times'
- 'When was \ last run'
- 'Are any agents waiting for my input or confirmation'
### Run background agents manually
``` bash
rowboatx --agent= --input="xyz" --no-interactive=true
```
```bash
rowboatx --agent= --run_id= # resume from a previous run
```
## Models support
You can configure your models in `~/.rowboat/config/models.json`
```json
{
"providers": {
"openai": {
"flavor": "openai"
},
"anthropic": {
"flavor": "anthropic"
},
"google": {
"flavor": "google"
},
"ollama": {
"flavor": "ollama"
}
},
"defaults": {
"provider": "openai",
"model": "gpt-5"
}
}
```
## Rowboat Classic UI
To use Rowboat Classic UI (not RowboatX), refer to [Classic](https://docs.rowboatlabs.com/).