# nanobot vs Orbits > nanobot scores 62.4 (B) to Orbits's 15.6 (F) for assistants reached by message. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side. - Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-orbits - Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-orbits.md (~3,350 tokens) - Slim: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-orbits.min.md (~580 tokens, same facts, less prose, for token-sensitive contexts) - JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-orbits.json (this page as data, same URL with Accept: application/json) - Site index for agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt (full text: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms-full.txt) - API: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json - Updated: 2026-10-13 nanobot scores 62.4 (B) on agent readiness against Orbits's 15.6 (F), and leads in every scored category. Both do assistants reached by message. - nanobot: grade B, 62.4/100, rank #446 of 1010. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/nanobot.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/nanobot.json - Orbits: grade F, 15.6/100, rank #997 of 1010. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/orbits.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/orbits.json - Best AI personal assistants that act for one person: https://www.anchorterminal.com/best/personal-assistants/index.md - All 834 assistants comparisons: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/personal-assistants/index.md ## Which one, for what ### nanobot (B) Good for: A technical owner who wants an assistant on their own machine across many chat apps, with file-based memory and a free choice of model. Ahead on: - Reliability, 70 against 15 - Schema & documentation, 77 against 10 - Agent ergonomics, 74 against 0 - Security & auth, 63 against 0 - Payments & pricing, 60 against 20 - Maintenance & community, 82 against 54 - Transparency & trust, 48 against 43 Also in its favour: - No key needed to call it - Open source Watch for: No per-action approval was found in the docs or source. The agent sends messages, runs shell commands and edits files without asking ### Orbits (F) Good for: Families who want one shared assistant for calendars, lists, meals, chores and household email. Also in its favour: - No incidents deducted, where nanobot loses 6 points for them Watch for: No public agent API, as llms.txt states. ## Score by category | Category | Weight | nanobot | Orbits | Edge | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 70 | 15 | nanobot +55 | | Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run | | Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 77 | 10 | nanobot +67 | | Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 74 | 0 | nanobot +74 | | Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 63 | 0 | nanobot +63 | | Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 60 | 20 | nanobot +40 | | Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run | | Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 82 | 54 | nanobot +28 | | Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 48 | 43 | nanobot +5 | | Negative events | ≤15 | -6 | 0 | | | **Total** | | **62.4 · B** | **15.6 · F** | | ## Facts side by side | Fact | nanobot | Orbits | | --- | --- | --- | | Kind | Agent harness | Platform | | Vendor | HKUDS | Nemus AI, Inc. | | Hosted endpoint | no (local only) | no (local only) | | Transports | | | | Auth | None | OAuth or key | | Pricing | Free | Paid | | x402 | no | no | | Licence | MIT | Closed service under the Orbits Terms of Service (Nemus AI, Inc.). | | Read-only variant documented | no | no | | llms.txt | yes | yes | | Last release | 2026-09-15 | 2026-10-13 | | Terms last updated | no document linked | | | Privacy policy last updated | no document linked | | | Customer content may train models | | | | Terms restrict automated access | | | | Terms restrict benchmarking | | | | Terms or service can change without notice | | | | Arbitration or class-action waiver | | | | Popularity | 49k stars | none | ## Verdicts **nanobot.** nanobot runs on the owner's machine under the MIT licence, with no telemetry found in its source and memory kept as files the owner can read and restore. No per-action approval step was found, and the shell sandbox and workspace restriction are off by default. Five security advisories were published between March and September 2026, all with fixes. **Orbits.** Orbits is a family household app whose assistant, Bit, runs shared calendars, lists and meals, reads household email and places restaurant calls after approval, with iOS releases every week or two. No outside agent can call it, prices appear only as App Store in-app purchases, and no status page, security contact or named subprocessors were found. ## Before you call either ### nanobot 1. Set `tools.restrictToWorkspace` to true and `tools.exec.sandbox` to `bwrap` or `seatbelt` before giving it real accounts. Both are off by default 2. Run 0.3.0 or later. Earlier versions carry the published SSRF flaw in web fetch (GHSA-vc5v-6vwm-wf9m) 3. Keep `allowFrom` narrow on every channel and never set `["*"]` on Email, which has no pairing 4. Write secrets as `${VAR}` references in `~/.nanobot/config.json`. Plain values are stored in clear text 5. Use `nanobot -m "..."` for a one-shot run, and keep `nanobot gateway` running for channels, schedules and heartbeat ### Orbits 1. Don't plan to call Orbits from another agent. llms.txt says no public agent API is offered. 2. Tell the owner the assistant needs an Orbits subscription bought in the app, and that any trial appears only at purchase. ## Questions ### Which is better for AI agents, nanobot or Orbits? nanobot scores 62.4 (B) on agent readiness against Orbits's 15.6 (F), and leads in every scored category. ### Are nanobot and Orbits open source? nanobot is open source (MIT). No open-source release is listed for Orbits. ## For agents - This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-orbits.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-orbits.min.md - Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {"a": "nanobot", "b": "orbits"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare nanobot orbits` - Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/nanobot.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/orbits.json ## Other comparisons with nanobot or Orbits - [asaply vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/asaply-vs-nanobot.md) - [asaply vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/asaply-vs-orbits.md) - [Asmi vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/asmi-vs-nanobot.md) - [Asmi vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/asmi-vs-orbits.md) - [AstrBot vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/astrbot-vs-orbits.md) - [Boba vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/boba-vs-nanobot.md) - [Boba vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/boba-vs-orbits.md) - [Boski vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/boski-vs-orbits.md) - [Brea vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/brea-vs-nanobot.md) - [Brea vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/brea-vs-orbits.md) - [Caddy vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/caddy-app-vs-orbits.md) - [CowAgent vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cowagent-vs-orbits.md) - [Del vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/del-vs-nanobot.md) - [Del vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/del-vs-orbits.md) - [folk vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/folk-nozomio-vs-orbits.md) - [GAIA vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gaia-vs-orbits.md) - [Grok Bot vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/grok-bot-vs-orbits.md) - [Haven vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/haven-vs-orbits.md) - [Hermes Agent vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/hermes-agent-vs-orbits.md) - [HireAlpha vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/hirealpha-vs-nanobot.md) - [HireAlpha vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/hirealpha-vs-orbits.md) - [Instinct vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/instinct-vs-orbits.md) - [IronClaw vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ironclaw-vs-orbits.md) - [Lindy vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/lindy-vs-orbits.md) - [nanobot vs OpenInstinct](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-openinstinct.md) - [nanobot vs Orchid](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-orchid-ai.md) - [nanobot vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-szn.md) - [nanobot vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-tab-bot.md) - [nanobot vs Zapia](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-zapia.md) - [NanoClaw vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanoclaw-vs-orbits.md) - [Dots vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-dots-vs-orbits.md) - [OpenClaw vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-orbits.md) - [OpenInstinct vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openinstinct-vs-orbits.md) - [Orbits vs Orchid](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/orbits-vs-orchid-ai.md) - [Orbits vs Pally](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/orbits-vs-pally.md) - [Orbits vs PicoClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/orbits-vs-picoclaw.md) - [Orbits vs Poke](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/orbits-vs-poke.md) - [Orbits vs QwenPaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/orbits-vs-qwenpaw.md) - [Orbits vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/orbits-vs-szn.md) - [Orbits vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/orbits-vs-tab-bot.md) - [Orbits vs Tomo](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/orbits-vs-tomo.md) - [Orbits vs Town](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/orbits-vs-town.md) - [Orbits vs Zapia](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/orbits-vs-zapia.md) - [Orbits vs ZeroClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/orbits-vs-zeroclaw.md) - [Orbits vs Zo Computer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/orbits-vs-zo-computer.md) - [AstrBot vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/astrbot-vs-nanobot.md) - [Boski vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/boski-vs-nanobot.md) - [Caddy vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/caddy-app-vs-nanobot.md) - [CowAgent vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cowagent-vs-nanobot.md) - [folk vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/folk-nozomio-vs-nanobot.md) - [GAIA vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gaia-vs-nanobot.md) - [Gemini Spark vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-spark-vs-nanobot.md) - [Grok Bot vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/grok-bot-vs-nanobot.md) - [Haven vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/haven-vs-nanobot.md) - [Hermes Agent vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/hermes-agent-vs-nanobot.md) - [Instinct vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/instinct-vs-nanobot.md) - [IronClaw vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ironclaw-vs-nanobot.md) - [Leon vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/leon-vs-nanobot.md) - [Lindy vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/lindy-vs-nanobot.md) - [nanobot vs NanoClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-nanoclaw.md) - [nanobot vs Dots](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-openai-dots.md) - [nanobot vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-openclaw.md) - [nanobot vs PicoClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-picoclaw.md) - [nanobot vs Poke](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-poke.md) - [nanobot vs QwenPaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-qwenpaw.md) - [nanobot vs Town](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-town.md) - [nanobot vs ZeroClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-zeroclaw.md) - [nanobot vs Zo Computer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-zo-computer.md) - [Gemini Spark vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-spark-vs-orbits.md) - [Leon vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/leon-vs-orbits.md) - [nanobot vs Natura tinyNature](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-natura.md) - [nanobot vs Pally](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-pally.md) - [nanobot vs Tomo](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-tomo.md) - [nanobot vs Wajo (Fo)](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-wajo.md) - [Natura tinyNature vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/natura-vs-orbits.md) - [Orbits vs Wajo (Fo)](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/orbits-vs-wajo.md) - [nanobot vs Talorys](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-talorys.md) - [Orbits vs Talorys](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/orbits-vs-talorys.md) ## Disclosure - Orbits competes with LocalGhost, which Anchor Terminal's founder builds. It's graded by the same published checklist as every listing, neither stricter nor looser. Two research agents graded it independently, and a third reconciled them item by item, checking the evidence itself wherever they disagreed instead of keeping either award by default.