About Chopsticks HQ
Small lab. Sharp tools.
Chopsticks HQ is an independent software lab for free, local-first tools and lightweight games. We ship under one domain so installs, docs, and releases stay easy to find — without accounts, subscriptions, or product telemetry.
Why the HQ exists
Most “system tools” either lock features behind a paywall or bury installs in store pages and accounts. We wanted a quieter path: open downloads, readable installers, and apps that treat the Mac as the source of truth — not a login server.
chopstickshq.com is the master domain. Each product gets a stable path (for example /rnitro/ and /fathom/) and optional product subdomains when DNS is set. GitHub holds source and release mirrors under ilikemacos.
How we work
Local-first
Sensors, battery math, and menus run on your machine. Optional network features (weather, AI chat, update checks) are explicit and limited.
No product accounts
You do not create a Chopsticks login to use rNitro or Fathom. Keys for third-party AI stay in Keychain on your Mac.
Readable shipping
App ZIPs, PKG/DMG when useful, and shell installers you can open before running. Channels (Stable / Beta / Experimental) are labeled on the product pages.
Free core
Menu bar monitoring and free-tier battery tools stay free. “Pro” unlocks are optional experiments — not a SaaS meter for basic stats.
Honest marketing
We do not claim affiliation with Apple, iStat Menus, Stats, or game studios. Third-party marks belong to their owners.
AS IS software
Everything is provided without warranty. Back up important data before installing. See the full software disclaimer.
What ships under the HQ
The homepage suite strip and project catalog stay current. Snapshot of the main lines:
- rNitro — Free open-source menu bar system monitor for macOS (and related CLI / Linux / Windows builds). CPU, temperature, battery, GPU, RAM, network. Optional AI with your provider keys.
- Fathom Air — Free local-only macOS battery app: menu bar %, time remaining, package watts, top energy apps, and “why drain?” without accounts.
-
Fathom Pro —
Fathom Air core plus local weather and multi-provider AI chat.
Unlock with a vault / scavenger
oi-plkey; cloud API keys are yours alone. - Doomlike-FPS™ — Browser FPS experiment (Chopsticks trademark; not affiliated with id Software).
- Minecraft portfolio — Server development portfolio and live telemetry for imik2261_.
- Guides & Vault — Install notes, battery guides, and the password-gated Fathom Pro key generator.
Channels & quality bar
Stable / Final is meant for daily use. Beta adds features that still need feedback. Experimental can change or break without ceremony — use when you want the newest toys.
Gatekeeper may require right-click → Open on first launch for ad-hoc signed builds. Prefer official paths under chopstickshq.com or the matching GitHub release assets.
Privacy in one paragraph
Product installs do not create Chopsticks accounts. Core monitor and battery apps do not
phone home usage analytics. Update checks may read a public
version.json on this site.
AI features only contact the provider you configure. Vault keys are generated in the browser
for unlock tokens — they are not free OpenAI or OpenRouter cloud keys.
Contact & source
Issues, builds, and release notes live on GitHub. Start with ilikemacos/rNitro and other repos under ilikemacos. Product pages list the current ZIP and installer for each line.