AI COLLABORATION HISTORY
What is AI collaboration history?
AI collaboration history is not a chat backup. It records how a project moves from a goal, through different attempts, branches, failures, and validation, to a result.
Why it matters
A plain chat log stacks messages by time, and the final answer is usually separated from the evidence that produced it. As a project grows, it becomes hard to answer "why was this approach abandoned", "which test changed the direction", or "what did another AI tool already do".
AI collaboration history puts that information back onto one project path, preserving the process instead of only a tidied success story.
What it should record
- Goal: what problem this stretch of work is trying to solve.
- Attempts and branches: which directions were explored, and which later failed or were rejected.
- Provenance: which session, tool, and moment the work came from.
- File changes: which files changed, when the source has real edit evidence.
- Validation: how tests, checks, or human judgment support the final result.
How Wayfinder works
Wayfinder is a macOS and Windows desktop app. On first launch it backfills the available local history, then reads new compatible sessions incrementally in the background, organizing them into voyages and branches by project.
Public Early Access currently supports Codex and Claude Code. These collectors are the current support scope, not a boundary that limits the product to coding.
Key facts at a glance
| Platforms | macOS (Apple Silicon and Intel) and Windows x64 |
|---|---|
| Current public collectors | Codex, Claude Code |
| Where data lives | All local, under ~/.wayfinder |
| Account / cloud sync / telemetry | None |
| Price | Free, open source (MIT) |
| Current version | 0.3.17 (Early Access) |
Where it applies
Any work with a sustained goal, multiple attempts, and a checkable result can form a reviewable history. It can be code changes, but also selecting research material, iterating an article's structure, comparing design directions, or other AI collaboration projects.
Wayfinder does not judge which route is "correct"; it keeps the currently available provenance and evidence so a person can review it themselves.
Independent directory listing
Wayfinder is included in the independently maintained awesome-mac AI Tools directory, which links to both the official website and open-source repository. This is a directory inclusion, not an award.
FAQ
Does it upload full conversations to the cloud?
No. The current version has no account, telemetry, cloud sync, or cloud analysis; the complete history stays on your computer under ~/.wayfinder.
Is it only for AI coding?
No. The product is for research, writing, design, coding, and other AI collaboration projects.
Does it invent missing file changes?
No. A file change is recorded only from a tool call that genuinely succeeded and has verifiable edit evidence.
Updated: 2026-09-14