Grok Bot vs Hermes

Grok Bot is an AI agent that gets its own computer in the cloud. You can create different bots for different jobs. One could be your personal assistant, another could be a researcher, shopper, copywriter, whatever.

If you were the type of person who got weirdly excited about Zapier, n8n, or even IFTTT back in the day, I think you're going to have a lot of fun with this!

• Has own cloud computer, so you can close your laptop and it just keeps working
• Actually does things inside websites
• You don't need to be technical at all to set it up and use it
• Can run recurring tasks without you remembering to ask again
• Works across desktop and mobile
• Has way more guardrails than something like OpenClaw

• Logging your real accounts into an AI's computer feels WEIRD at first
• Better for personal automation than serious business workflows
• Coding is not as advanced as Codex or Claude Code

Every Bot gets its own computer in the cloud, so you can give it something to do, it will keep working even when your laptop is off. Grok Bot works across both mobile and desktop so you can keep checking in.

You can tell Grok Bot to do something every day or every week and then... you don't need to remember to ask it again!

For example, our Head of Engineering, Bob, asked Grok Bot to monitor Facebook Marketplace for a guitar and let him know when one in his budget was available.

I'm most excited to figure out more use cases I can hand off.

This part was the biggest mental hurdle for me at first.

The first time Grok Bot asked me to log into Whole Foods on its cloud computer, I was immediately like... "wait, what? Is this ok?"

Because yes, you're entering your login into a computer being controlled by an AI agent.

The reason I eventually felt okay trying it is that Grok Bot has a lot more permission controls than something like OpenClaw. You can give it rules in plain English, and it'll stop to ask before doing things like making purchases, sending something, deleting things, or taking another sensitive action.

Our Head of Engineering has logged his Bot into Facebook, email, Amazon, X, and Ramp.

Would I give it access to my bank account? Absolutely not lol. Maybe one day. We are not there yet.

If you're already paying for Grok or Cursor, trying Grok Bot feels like kind of a no-brainer.

• Cursor Pro: $20/month and includes Grok Bot
• SuperGrok: $30/month and includes Grok Bot alongside Grok
• SuperGrok Plus: $100/month with higher usage limits and priority access
• Teams and Enterprise: Available through eligible team plans, with pricing depending on the account

Hermes is an open-source AI agent that you host yourself. You install the software, connect an AI model and your chat apps, and configure it to perform tasks for you. Hermes is NOT FOR YOU if you are not technical. Do not buy into the propaganda that using Hermes is "cheaper" because the software is free. You need to pay for hosting, model usage, not to mention your time to maintain it and ensure it has proper secure guardrails in place.

Hermes is best for technical users who enjoy self-hosting and experimenting with open-source software. But if you're a business looking for an AI employee, you should not choose Hermes.

Our team employs two full-time engineers who could set up and manage Hermes, but it still wouldn't be a good use of their time.

• Free and open source
• Gives you control over the software and configuration
• Can run on your own hardware or server
• Works with chat apps such as Slack, Telegram, Discord, and WhatsApp
• Highly customizable for technical users

• Complicated to install and configure
• Requires ongoing maintenance and troubleshooting
• Makes you responsible for security and reliability
• Sessions may stall, freeze, or need to be reset
• Server and AI model costs can add up
• Not practical for most nontechnical users or busy teams

Hermes is free, open source, and runs on your own hardware or server. This gives you more control over the software, data, and configuration than you would get from a managed AI assistant.

Sounds good right? Well be prepared to handle the setup, updates, security, reliability, and maintenance yourself. If you have no idea what this all means, skip Hermes.

Hermes can communicate through apps such as Slack, Telegram, Discord, and WhatsApp. This allows you to interact with it inside the tools you already use instead of opening a separate AI app.

However, it isn't as comprehensive out of the box as a managed AI teammate. Most AI agents have already built thousands of integrations with third party apps so you're behind if you're using Hermes.

• Hermes software: Free and open source.
• AI model usage: Varies depending on the model and provider you connect.
• Hosting: Varies depending on whether you use your own hardware or rent a server.
• Setup and maintenance: The largest hidden cost, especially if you need an engineer or consultant to manage it.