As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to transform our daily workflows, creatives and professionals using macOS are increasingly seeking smarter tools to enhance productivity. One rising solution is the AI overlay—a seamless, on-screen assistant or utility that works across applications, providing contextual help, summarization, writing suggestions, coding aid, and more. But with numerous options entering the market, a common question arises: What is the best AI overlay for Mac?

This article explores the leading AI overlay tools compatible with macOS, their key features, pros and cons, and offers insight into how to choose the best one for your needs.

Understanding AI Overlays

An AI overlay is a type of assistant that “floats” over your Mac’s interface, often in the form of a widget, sidebar, or hotkey-activated pop-up. Unlike standalone AI apps, overlays are meant to integrate with whatever you’re doing—whether writing an email, designing in Photoshop, or coding in Xcode—offering smart suggestions or automations in real-time.

These tools usually rely on large language models (LLMs) like OpenAI's GPT-4, Anthropic's Claude, or Google’s Gemini, bringing cutting-edge natural language processing capabilities to your fingertips.

Features to Look for in an AI Overlay

Before selecting the best AI overlay for Mac, it’s important to consider the following features:

• System-wide Accessibility: Does it work across all your applications?

• Hotkey Activation: Can you invoke the overlay instantly with a shortcut?

• Context Awareness: Does it read and understand on-screen content securely?

• Privacy and Data Handling: Is your data handled securely and locally, or sent to the cloud?

• Customization Options: Can you train it on your writing style or create workflows?

• Multimodal Support: Can it process images, screenshots, or PDFs as input?

• Performance: Is it lightweight and optimized for macOS without draining resources?

Let’s now explore the top AI overlays available for Mac that meet most, if not all, of these needs.

1. MacWhisper + ChatGPT Desktop App (Combo Solution)

While not technically a single overlay, this combo can act like one. MacWhisper is a local transcription tool using OpenAI’s Whisper model, and ChatGPT for macOS, officially launched in 2024, acts as a native overlay assistant.

• Pros:

  • Native app designed specifically for Mac with Apple Silicon optimization

  • Can be launched via hotkey (e.g., Option + Space)

  • Uses GPT-4o with vision and voice capabilities

  • Lightweight and responsive

  • Can interpret screen content (on supported apps)

• Cons:

  • Limited integration with third-party productivity apps unless copy-pasting

  • MacWhisper is audio-focused; needs pairing with another AI tool for full overlay functionality

Best For: Writers, researchers, and users embedded in the Apple ecosystem who want privacy, speed, and ChatGPT-level intelligence.

2. Raycast AI

Raycast is a powerful productivity launcher for macOS that now includes an AI assistant, tightly integrated into its command palette. Though not a floating overlay in the visual sense, its keyboard-centric interface offers powerful AI functionality from anywhere on the Mac.

• Pros:

  • System-wide invocation (via shortcut)

  • Works in context with your files and commands

  • Can write code, summarize documents, generate text, and more

  • Highly customizable via extensions

• Cons:

  • No visual overlay or context reading unless explicitly copied/pasted

  • Some advanced features require a paid plan

Best For: Developers, power users, and automation lovers who want to blend AI with command-line efficiency.

3. Rewind AI

Rewind AI markets itself as a “searchable memory” for your Mac, recording your screen, audio, and interactions (with your permission) to let you search anything you’ve seen or said. Recently, it added an AI assistant that understands your entire computing history and provides answers accordingly.

• Pros:

  • Hyper-contextual AI using your own activity history

  • Search across all apps, meetings, emails, and documents

  • Works entirely locally (privacy-focused)

  • Mac-optimized; excellent performance on M1/M2/M3 chips

• Cons:

  • Hefty initial setup; needs disk space for recordings

  • May raise privacy concerns despite local-only processing

  • Paid subscription required

Best For: Knowledge workers, researchers, and executives needing AI recall and deep context awareness.

4. Monica AI Assistant (Browser-based with Overlay Features)

Monica is a Chrome extension that serves as an overlay assistant while you browse. It can summarize pages, answer questions, generate emails, and even assist while writing in forms or Gmail.

• Pros:

  • Lightweight and easy to install

  • Browser-based overlay appears contextually on supported sites

  • Built-in AI tools: summarizer, translator, writer, coder

  • Affordable pricing for premium features

• Cons:

  • Limited to Chrome-based browsers

  • Doesn’t function system-wide outside the browser

Best For: Casual users who work primarily in Chrome and want help while browsing or emailing.

5. Cody by Sourcegraph

Cody is an AI coding assistant that works across your IDE and integrates with your codebase. It can be used on Mac via editors like VS Code, making it feel like an overlay for developers.

• Pros:

  • Deeply integrated with source code

  • Understands large codebases

  • Fast, accurate completions using Claude or GPT models

  • Works on macOS in VS Code, JetBrains, etc.

• Cons:

  • Dev-centric; not useful for general tasks like writing or summarizing

  • Doesn’t cover system-wide tasks outside IDE

Best For: Mac developers who need an AI overlay specifically for coding tasks.

Conclusion: What Is the Best AI Overlay for Mac?

There is no one-size-fits-all answer, but depending on your needs, here's a quick summary:

If you're looking for a polished, native experience with high intelligence and fast access across apps, ChatGPT for Mac (especially with GPT-4o) currently stands out as the best AI overlay for Mac in 2025. It brings together multimodal capabilities, system-wide access, and a responsive interface that doesn’t interrupt your flow.

However, power users may benefit more from Raycast, while privacy-focused users will lean toward Rewind. As macOS continues to evolve, expect even deeper AI integration with tools like Apple Intelligence expected to debut soon.