Khoj

A personal AI second brain that answers from the web and your own documents, reachable from the browser, Obsidian, Emacs, desktop, phone or WhatsApp.

37.9k stars, 2.5k forks Python On GitHub since August 2021

Visit website View on GitHub How to run it
Development has slowed down. No commits in the last 90 days; the latest on 2 August 2026. Active alternatives: DocsGPT, Onyx, MaxKB.

What is Khoj?

Khoj connects any local or online model, such as Llama, Qwen, Mistral, GPT, Claude or Gemini, to your notes and files: PDFs, Markdown, org-mode, Word documents and Notion pages, plus the web. You can create agents with their own knowledge and persona, schedule automations that send you research by email, and run deep research. It is available from many places you already work, including plugins for Obsidian and Emacs, a desktop app and WhatsApp, and scales from a personal install to a team server.

Good fit if

  • You keep notes in Obsidian or Emacs and want an assistant that searches them.
  • You want answers that combine your own files with web results.

Look elsewhere if

  • You want an actively developed project: Khoj had only two commits in the last 90 days, and its team now promotes Pipali, a new AI coworker app.
  • You need notebook-style research with podcasts: Open Notebook.

Before you adopt it

Khoj is AGPL-3.0; it switched from GPL-3.0 in November 2023. Self-hosting uses PostgreSQL alongside the app. A hosted version is available from the developers.

Drafted with AI from the project's README and repository data, then checked against that data on 30 October 2026. Report a correction

Khoj health: is it still maintained?

18 of 100, slowing down

  • Activity
    No commits in the last 90 days, the latest on 2 August 2026.
    0 / 30
  • Contributors
    Nobody committed in the last 90 days.
    0 / 20
  • Releases
    5 releases in the last 12 months; the latest, 2.0.0-beta.28, on 26 March 2026.
    9 / 20
  • Replies to issues
    Maintainers answered 10% of recent issues, with a median first reply after 9 days.
    4 / 20
  • Security practices
    No OpenSSF Scorecard for this repository yet, so this part gets a neutral score.
    5 / 10

Read from GitHub on 1 November 2026. How the score works

Khoj license: is it open source?

Khoj uses AGPL-3.0, an open-source license approved by the OSI.

  1. August 2021First published on GitHub under GPL-3.0.
  2. 16 November 2023Changed to AGPL-3.0. Commit: Change license to GNU AGPLv3 from GNU GPLv3
  3. TodayAGPL-3.0.

How to run Khoj yourself

Docker
Dockerfile or compose file in the repository
Compose file
docker-compose.yml: 5 services (postgres)
Setup effort
3 of 5, judged from the compose file
Kubernetes
No Helm chart in the repository
Desktop and mobile
No app builds in GitHub releases
Interface languages
English only

Install instructions: khoj.dev or the README on GitHub.

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Questions about Khoj

Is Khoj open source?

Yes. Khoj is published under AGPL-3.0, an OSI-approved open-source license.

Is Khoj still maintained?

Its health score is 18 of 100 (slowing down). It had no commits in the last 90 days, the latest on 2 August 2026, and its latest release came out on 26 March 2026.

Did Khoj change its license?

Yes. It moved from GPL-3.0 to AGPL-3.0 on 16 November 2023.

How do I run Khoj?

You can run it with Docker. The README on GitHub has the exact steps.

What are the alternatives to Khoj?

Close alternatives in the AI chat & local LLMs category include DocsGPT, Onyx, MaxKB.