AI Spotlight Panel

A macOS Spotlight-inspired AI assistant built with Tauri v2, React, and TypeScript. Trigger it from anywhere with a global hotkey to get instant AI-powered answers and translations.

Features

• Global Hotkey: Press Option+Space to toggle the spotlight panel from anywhere
• AI Quick Answers: Get instant responses powered by local Ollama models with web search capabilities
• Real-time Translation: Automatically detects and translates non-English text to English, with optional English-to-second-language output
• Thinking Mode: Optional chain-of-thought reasoning for more thorough responses
• Native Experience: Transparent, frameless window that appears above all other windows
• System Tray: Runs quietly in the background with easy access to options

Screenshots

The spotlight panel appears as a floating search bar that can be summoned from any application.

Prerequisites

• Bun - JavaScript runtime and package manager
• Rust - For building the Tauri backend
• Ollama - Local AI model runtime (must be running on port 11434)

Installation

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/laruss/ai-spotlight-panel.git
   cd ai-spotlight-panel

2. Install dependencies:

   bun install

3. Install an Ollama model:

   ollama pull qwen3:30b
   # Or any other model you prefer

Development

Start the development server:

bun run tauri-dev

This will:

• Start the Vite dev server on port 1420
• Build and run the Tauri application in development mode
• Enable hot-reload for frontend changes

Available Scripts

Command	Description
bun run dev	Start Vite dev server only
bun run tauri-dev	Start full Tauri development environment
bun run build	Build TypeScript and production bundle
bun run tauri build	Build production application bundle
bun run lint	Lint code using Biome
bun run format	Format code using Biome
bun run check	Run Biome's comprehensive check
bun run fix	Auto-fix lint, format, and type issues
bun run typecheck	Run TypeScript type checking

Usage

1. Launch the app - After starting, the app runs in the system tray (no dock icon)

2. Toggle Spotlight - Press Option+Space

3. Search or Ask - Type your query:

   • Questions get AI-powered answers with web search
   • Non-English text is automatically translated

4. Dismiss - Press Escape or click outside the panel

5. Access Options - Click the system tray icon and select "Options" to:

   • Choose your Ollama model
   • Toggle thinking mode
   • Refresh available models
   • Configure the web search API URL and key
   • Set the translation second language (optional)

Architecture

ai-spotlight-panel/
├── src/                    # React frontend
│   ├── components/         # UI components (shadcn/ui)
│   ├── hooks/              # Custom React hooks
│   ├── App.tsx             # Main spotlight component
│   ├── Options.tsx         # Settings window
│   └── Toast.tsx           # Toast notifications
├── src-tauri/              # Rust backend
│   ├── src/
│   │   ├── lib.rs          # Tauri commands and setup
│   │   └── main.rs         # Entry point
│   └── tauri.conf.json     # Tauri configuration
└── package.json

Key Technologies

• Frontend: React 19, TypeScript, Tailwind CSS 4, shadcn/ui
• Backend: Tauri 2, Rust
• AI: Ollama (local LLM inference)
• Build Tools: Vite 7, Biome, Bun

Tauri Plugins

• tauri-plugin-global-shortcut - Global hotkey registration
• tauri-plugin-store - Persistent settings storage
• tauri-plugin-autostart - Launch on system startup
• tauri-plugin-clipboard-manager - Copy results to clipboard
• tauri-plugin-http - HTTP client for API requests
• tauri-plugin-log - Application logging
• tauri-nspanel (macOS) - Native panel behavior

Configuration

Environment Variables

No runtime environment variables are required. Web search settings are configured in the Options window and stored locally.

Settings (via Options window)

• Ollama Model: Select from available local models
• Enable Thinking: Toggle chain-of-thought reasoning mode
• Web Search API URL: Base endpoint used for web search
• Web Search API Key: Stored locally for authenticated search requests
• Translation Second Language: Translate English input to a selected language

Building for Production

bun run tauri build

This creates bundles in src-tauri/target/release/bundle/:

• .app - Application bundle
• .dmg - Disk image for distribution

Releases

Pre-built binaries are automatically created when the version is updated. To trigger a new release:

1. Update the version in the VERSION file in the project root
2. Commit and push to the main branch
3. GitHub Actions will automatically build and create a release

Supported Platforms

Platform	Architecture	Artifacts
macOS	ARM64 (Apple Silicon)	.dmg
macOS	x64 (Intel)	.dmg

Download the latest release from the Releases page.

Troubleshooting

"App is damaged and can't be opened"

This happens because the app is not signed with an Apple Developer certificate. To fix:

xattr -cr /Applications/ai-spotlight-panel.app

Then open the app again.

Ollama Connection Issues

Make sure Ollama is running:

ollama serve

Check if models are available:

ollama list

Global Shortcut Not Working

• On macOS, grant Accessibility permissions in System Preferences
• The shortcut may conflict with other applications - check for conflicts

Window Not Appearing

• Ensure the app has screen recording permissions on macOS
• Try restarting the application

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please read the contributing guidelines before submitting a PR.