Ashokan
A simple, native Mac app for editing the HTML and Markdown documents that AI agents write — WYSIWYG editing, tracked changes, and comments, in files that stay plain HTML.
macOS 14+, Apple Silicon. Free, MIT-licensed. Signed and notarized by Apple, so downloads open like any Mac app.
Why I Built This
I've started using HTML files instead of Markdown when working with Claude Code and Codex. Thariq Shihipar at Anthropic wrote a good piece about why — and he's right. An HTML file can hold real tables, styles, columns, and charts; it opens in any browser on any machine; and it's an open format, so there's no word-processor lock-in and no versioning headaches.
The missing piece was editing. I wanted something simple: open the file an agent just wrote, read it like a document, fix a sentence, leave a comment, send it back. Word processors keep you in their own formats; code editors show you angle brackets. I looked around and couldn't find anything that did this well, so I worked with Claude to put this little application together.
What I Like About It
It never rewrites your file
Edit one word, diff the file — nothing else moved. Styles, scripts, and markup it doesn't recognize are preserved exactly. A regression suite checks this on every build.
Tracked changes that work anywhere
Suggestions are standard ins/del markup, so redlines render in any browser. Hover a change to accept or reject it; bulk-accept by author; preview the document clean or original.
Comments in the margin
Select text, add a comment, see it in the margin like Word or Google Docs, except it's stored as plain markup, readable on hover in any browser.
AI review that stays local
Point it at an Ollama model on your own machine and its suggestions arrive as tracked changes, with the model named as author. Nothing leaves your Mac.
Plays well with agents
Embed instructions that teach Claude Code or Codex to redline instead of rewrite. If an agent changes the open file on disk, Ashokan reloads it, or asks which version wins.
Agents can connect directly (MCP)
Flip one menu item and any MCP agent — Claude Code, Codex — can read your open documents and propose edits, which always arrive as tracked changes under the agent's name. You accept or reject. Off by default; zero overhead when off.
The normal stuff, done natively
Tables, images embedded right into the file, task lists, printing and print-quality PDF export, Markdown in and out. Swift and AppKit on the system WebKit — fast, small, no Electron.
Try It
It's free and open source (MIT), signed and notarized. Download it, open something an agent wrote for you, and hit ⌘/ to watch the source stay clean while you edit. There's a built-in tour document if you want the two-minute version.
It's early. I use it every day, and it gets better every time someone tells me what's broken or missing. If you have thoughts, file an issue on GitHub. Named for the Ashokan Reservoir in the Catskills, near home.