Claude Cowork is a fascinating idea for non-devs, but I wanted a version that was open-source, lightweight, and strictly model-agnostic.

So I spent the last 24 hours with Claude Code and here it comes:

Native Rust, Zero-Wrappers: This isn't just another agent wrapper. It’s a ground-up implementation in Rust. No heavy dependencies, no Python bloat, and no reliance on OpenCode/AgentSDK. Just raw performance and a tiny binary.

Docker Sandboxing: Since agents execute code, security is paramount. Open Cowork runs commands inside a transient Docker container.

BYOK (Bring Your Own Key): Use OpenAI, Anthropic, or run entirely offline with Ollama/Local LLMs. You own the keys and the privacy.

Skills, and MCPs: It can already handle complex document tasks (PDF, Excel, etc.) out of the box.

The Development Story: The most interesting part is that I had zero Rust experience before this weekend.

It was a surreal experience: an AI agent (Claude Code) helping me build a faster, secure, and open-source version of "itself."

The project is live on GitHub:https://github.com/kuse-ai/kuse_cowork

It's still very early and experimental, any feedback is welcome ：）