Use SaneSideButtons on your Mac from ChatGPT or Claude
Menu bar app that enables system-wide navigation using side mouse buttons. With BCD, ChatGPT, Claude and other AI apps can open SaneSideButtons on your Mac, read its window and press buttons or type, from your phone or another computer.
Works on
- MacPartly
Through the app's window, with macOS accessibility: BCD reads what SaneSideButtons shows and presses buttons, types and picks menus. How far it goes depends on the app. macOS asks once to allow it.
- WindowsNo
BCD controls app windows only on a Mac.
- LinuxNo
BCD controls app windows only on a Mac.
About SaneSideButtons
- Version
- 1.4.1
- Installs (last 365 days)
- 2,337 · #515 among Homebrew apps
- Needs
- macOS 13 or later
- Homepage
- janhuelsmann.com/sanesidebuttons
- Install
brew install --cask sanesidebuttons
Try asking
“Open SaneSideButtons and tell me what is on its screen”
“Install SaneSideButtons with Homebrew”
“Quit SaneSideButtons and update it to the latest version”
Questions
Can ChatGPT control SaneSideButtons?
On a Mac with BCD, yes, through the app's window: ChatGPT can open SaneSideButtons, read the buttons and text it shows, press buttons, type and pick menu items. How far that goes depends on how much of its window SaneSideButtons exposes to macOS accessibility.
Does this work on Windows?
No. BCD controls app windows only on a Mac. On Windows and Linux it works with files and commands.
Is it safe?
A new computer starts read-only. Controlling the screen and apps is turned on per computer, and macOS asks once before BCD may control apps.
Try it on your computer
BCD connects ChatGPT, Claude and other AI apps to your own Mac, Windows or Linux computer. One computer is free, with 20,000 tool calls a month and no card.
Program data from Homebrew, updated 2026-11-11. Installs are Homebrew's installs on request over the last 365 days.