Scheduled Ask Runs on Mac (Quiet Mode)
Published 2026-10-01 · Updated 2026-10-10
Schedules let Ask run a task on your Mac at set times, without you opening the phone each time. Each schedule is a prompt plus a cadence: every day or on weekdays at a time you pick, or every hour. The helper on the Mac checks once a minute and runs whatever is due, whether or not the iPhone is connected.
What a scheduled run can do
Every scheduled run uses Ask’s Quiet reach. It takes no screenshots, cannot click or type, and cannot use tool servers. It works from your task text and what Ask remembers, and it can add to that memory. It cannot look at your screen, your apps or your files.
That makes schedules a fit for:
- recurring summaries of what Ask remembers about your work,
- reminders drawn from what you asked Ask to remember,
- tasks that repeat on weekdays or every day at a set time, or every hour.
It is the same Ask agent you start by hand, with one difference: a manual task can use Screen, Quiet or Tools, while a scheduled run is always Quiet. A schedule does not replace the live screen or a task you start yourself.
Which model runs it
A scheduled run uses the model chosen for Ask in the app’s Settings, under Model, and reads that choice again at every run. If you change it, the next scheduled run uses the new one.
In 1.0, the Local model option (Ollama running on the Mac) is the one whose path does not need a screenshot. The Claude subscription option runs through Claude Code, which needs a screenshot to act on at every step. A scheduled run takes none, so the Claude subscription can’t run schedules. From Mac helper 1.0.3, a schedule made or switched on under it is kept off with the reason (“Off: the Claude subscription can’t run schedules.”), and a run that falls due is skipped with the reason; earlier helpers ended the run without an answer.
Setup pattern
- Run the task once in Ask with Quiet selected, because every scheduled run uses Quiet.
- Define a task that is stable and repeatable.
- In the iPhone app, tap the brain icon, open Schedule, tap Schedule a task, write what it should do, and pick Weekdays, Every day or Hourly. The iPhone has to be connected to the Mac to add one.
- Check the result in History, in the schedule’s “last:” line, or in the notification on the Mac. To change a task’s wording, delete it and schedule it again.
Reliability notes
Schedules run only while the Mac is awake and the helper is open. For reliable scheduled runs:
- keep the Mac awake and the helper running,
- schedule only tasks that need no screen, because a scheduled run cannot see or use it,
- when your workflow changes, delete the schedule and add it again with new wording.
Only one scheduled task runs at a time; another that falls due waits until it finishes. If the Mac was asleep or the helper was closed at a scheduled time, the task runs once, late, as soon as the helper checks again; other missed times are not replayed.
Security and privacy considerations
Scheduled tasks follow the same rules as manual Ask, with a narrower reach:
- your schedules are stored on the Mac and sent only to your paired devices,
- each run sends the task text and what Ask remembers to the model you chose; with a cloud model they go to that provider, and with a local model in Ollama they stay on your Mac,
- a scheduled run sends no screenshots,
- each run’s task and the start of its result show in a notification on the Mac, where anyone at that screen can read them.
If a task handles sensitive material, choose wording and model accordingly.
Where this fits in the product
Schedules complement, rather than replace:
- Screen for direct visual control,
- Trackpad and the keyboard bar for interactive input,
- Deck tiles for one-tap Mac actions,
- Ask tasks you start yourself, for anything that needs the screen.
For models and reach, read AI that controls your Mac; for the rest of the app, see control setup. For policy and limits, see Security and Support.
Frequently asked questions
Can schedules click around the screen?
No. Every scheduled run uses Ask's Quiet reach: it takes no screenshots, cannot click or type, and cannot use tool servers. For work on the screen, start the task yourself in Ask.
Do schedules still use my model provider?
Yes. Each run uses the model chosen for Ask, read again at run time. A scheduled run sends text only, so the Claude subscription can't run schedules: Claude Code works from a screenshot, and a scheduled run takes none. Since Mac helper 1.0.3 the helper says so and keeps such a schedule switched off; earlier versions ended the run without an answer.
Can I stop a scheduled run?
Yes, for future runs. In the iPhone app, tap the brain icon, open Schedule, and switch the task off or delete it. If it is running at that moment, delete it instead: switching it off mid-run does not stick. The Mac helper's menu has no schedule controls.