Block, a technology company, has open-sourced Berd, a desktop application it developed for its employees. Berd offers a consolidated environment for interacting with AI agents across various models and tools. It functions as a locally installed graphical application, distinct from browser-based alternatives. Available on GitHub under an Apache 2.0 license, Berd supports macOS, Windows, and Linux. The application is designed as a central "daily AI work surface" where users can manage chats, files, agents, and automations. A key design principle is transparency, allowing users to clearly see the operational state of their AI interactions. Berd originated from Block's internal need to streamline fragmented AI agent experiences. It aims to provide a consistent desktop application for managing multiple AI models and their associated systems. Persistent projects within Berd enable users to resume tasks without re-establishing context. Block also emphasizes making agentic work accessible beyond engineering roles. Berd differentiates itself by giving agents distinct visual identities and roles, moving beyond generic chat interfaces. These animated characters, like "Gloopies," serve as recognizable shorthand for agent configurations. Architecturally, Berd is an orchestration layer, not a new AI model or runtime. It is built on Tauri 2 and React 19 and integrates with Block's Goose agent framework. Goose, an open-source agent framework, connects large language models to external tools and data. Berd's portability is a key feature, with data and configurations designed to be accessible outside the application. The application employs a local-first data model, storing conversation history on the user's device. Telemetry is disabled by default in official Berd distributions to prioritize user privacy.