# nanobot vs Zo Computer

> nanobot scores 62.4 (B) to Zo Computer's 43.1 (E) for assistant proactive. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side.

- Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-zo-computer
- Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-zo-computer.md (~2,700 tokens)
- Slim: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-zo-computer.min.md (~730 tokens, same facts, less prose, for token-sensitive contexts)
- JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-zo-computer.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: 2026-10-12

nanobot scores 62.4 (B) on agent readiness against Zo Computer's 43.1 (E), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. Zo Computer leads on transparency & trust. Both do assistant proactive.

- nanobot: grade B, 62.4/100, rank #446 of 986. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/nanobot.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/nanobot.json
- Zo Computer: grade E, 43.1/100, rank #911 of 986. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/zo-computer.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/zo-computer.json
- Best AI personal assistants that act for one person: https://www.anchorterminal.com/best/personal-assistants/index.md
- All 190 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
- Agent ergonomics, 74 against 34
- Security & auth, 63 against 37
- Payments & pricing, 60 against 40
- Maintenance & community, 82 against 68

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

### Zo Computer (E)

Good for: One person who wants a hosted assistant with its own Linux machine, reachable by text message and chat apps, and who accepts that the assistant acts on connected accounts without a documented approval step.

Ahead on:
- Transparency & trust, 60 against 48

Also in its favour:
- A hosted endpoint, with nothing to install
- No incidents deducted, where nanobot loses 6 points for them

Watch for: The access token for the API and MCP endpoint grants full access to the workspace, with no scoped or read-only token documented


## Score by category

| Category | Weight | nanobot | Zo Computer | 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 | 73 | nanobot +4 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 74 | 34 | nanobot +40 |
| Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 63 | 37 | nanobot +26 |
| Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 60 | 40 | nanobot +20 |
| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 82 | 68 | nanobot +14 |
| Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 48 | 60 | Zo Computer +12 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | -6 | 0 | |
| **Total** | | **62.4 · B** | **43.1 · E** | |

## Facts side by side

| Fact | nanobot | Zo Computer |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | Agent harness | HTTP API |
| Vendor | HKUDS | Zo Computer Company |
| Hosted endpoint | no (local only) | `https://api.zo.computer/mcp` |
| Transports |  | HTTP |
| Auth | None | API key |
| Pricing | Free | Freemium |
| x402 | no | no |
| Licence | MIT | Proprietary service under Zo Computer Company's terms of service |
| Read-only variant documented | no | no |
| llms.txt | yes | yes |
| Last release | 2026-09-15 | 2026-09-14 |
| Terms last updated | no document linked | 2025-08-08 |
| Privacy policy last updated | no document linked | 2026-05-20 |
| Customer content may train models |  | not found in the text |
| Terms restrict automated access |  | not found in the text |
| Terms restrict benchmarking |  | not found in the text |
| Terms or service can change without notice |  | not found in the text |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver |  | not found in the text |
| 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.

**Zo Computer.** Zo publishes an OpenAPI file, Markdown docs, plan prices and a named list of the providers that receive user content. One access token grants full access to the workspace, no approval step before sending or buying was found in the reviewed docs, and no status page, rate limit or SLA is published.

## 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

### Zo Computer

1. Send `POST https://api.zo.computer/zo/ask` with `Authorization: Bearer zo_sk_...` and an `input` string. The owner creates the token under Settings > Advanced
2. Pass `persona_id` for a persona with a narrow tool set. The token itself carries every permission the owner has
3. Set `memory_mode` to `off` to keep workspace memory out of a request. The field is in the OpenAPI file and absent from the API guide
4. Do not retry `/zo/ask` blindly after a timeout. No idempotency key is documented and the request may already have sent a message
5. Append `.md` to any guide or reference URL for Markdown

## Questions

### Which is better for AI agents, nanobot or Zo Computer?

nanobot scores 62.4 (B) on agent readiness against Zo Computer's 43.1 (E), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. Zo Computer leads on transparency & trust.

### Can an agent call nanobot and Zo Computer without installing anything?

No hosted endpoint is listed for nanobot. Zo Computer has a hosted endpoint at https://api.zo.computer/mcp.

### Are nanobot and Zo Computer open source?

nanobot is open source (MIT). No open-source release is listed for Zo Computer.


## For agents

- This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-zo-computer.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-zo-computer.min.md
- Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {"a": "nanobot", "b": "zo-computer"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare nanobot zo-computer`
- Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/nanobot.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/zo-computer.json

## Other comparisons with nanobot or Zo Computer

- [AstrBot vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/astrbot-vs-nanobot.md)
- [AstrBot vs Zo Computer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/astrbot-vs-zo-computer.md)
- [CowAgent vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cowagent-vs-nanobot.md)
- [CowAgent vs Zo Computer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cowagent-vs-zo-computer.md)
- [GAIA vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gaia-vs-nanobot.md)
- [GAIA vs Zo Computer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gaia-vs-zo-computer.md)
- [Gemini Spark vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-spark-vs-nanobot.md)
- [Gemini Spark vs Zo Computer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-spark-vs-zo-computer.md)
- [Grok Bot vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/grok-bot-vs-nanobot.md)
- [Grok Bot vs Zo Computer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/grok-bot-vs-zo-computer.md)
- [Haven vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/haven-vs-nanobot.md)
- [Haven vs Zo Computer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/haven-vs-zo-computer.md)
- [Hermes Agent vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/hermes-agent-vs-nanobot.md)
- [Hermes Agent vs Zo Computer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/hermes-agent-vs-zo-computer.md)
- [Instinct vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/instinct-vs-nanobot.md)
- [Instinct vs Zo Computer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/instinct-vs-zo-computer.md)
- [IronClaw vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ironclaw-vs-nanobot.md)
- [IronClaw vs Zo Computer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ironclaw-vs-zo-computer.md)
- [Leon vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/leon-vs-nanobot.md)
- [Leon vs Zo Computer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/leon-vs-zo-computer.md)
- [Lindy vs nanobot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/lindy-vs-nanobot.md)
- [Lindy vs Zo Computer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/lindy-vs-zo-computer.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 ZeroClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-zeroclaw.md)
- [NanoClaw vs Zo Computer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanoclaw-vs-zo-computer.md)
- [Dots vs Zo Computer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-dots-vs-zo-computer.md)
- [OpenClaw vs Zo Computer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-zo-computer.md)
- [PicoClaw vs Zo Computer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/picoclaw-vs-zo-computer.md)
- [Poke vs Zo Computer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/poke-vs-zo-computer.md)
- [QwenPaw vs Zo Computer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/qwenpaw-vs-zo-computer.md)
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