> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.notatechguy.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Hermes Agent: 240k GitHub stars for self-improving AI - URL: https://www.notatechguy.com/hermes-agent-240k-github-stars-for-self-improving-ai/ - Published: 2026-09-03T18:04:44.000Z - Updated: 2026-09-03T18:04:42.000Z - Description: NousResearch's Hermes Agent has 240,000 GitHub stars for an open-source AI agent that claims to learn from every conversation and create new skills. - Author: Marcello Babbili - Tags: Technology & AI, OpenAI NousResearch's Hermes Agent has crossed 240,000 GitHub stars and landed on the platform's daily trending list three times in two weeks [S¹](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com)[S²](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com)[S³](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com). The maintainers call it "the agent that grows with you" and claim it is the only AI agent with a built-in learning loop that creates skills from experience [S¹](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com). Whether any of that holds up under independent testing is a question nobody has answered yet. **My read:** I've been watching agent frameworks for months, and the star count here is the first thing that makes me pause. 240,000 stars in roughly 13 months since the repo was created in July 2025 [P⁴](https://github.com/nousresearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com) puts this in the same neighbourhood as projects that took years to get there. The claims are ambitious: an agent that remembers your past conversations and builds new skills from them, autonomously. I don't buy the "only agent with a built-in learning loop" claim for a second, because the evidence pack contains zero independent benchmarks. But the architecture description, if it works as described, points at something the agent ecosystem has been missing: persistence that compounds rather than resets every session. ## What the README actually promises The repository, written in Python and released under the MIT licence [P⁴](https://github.com/nousresearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com), describes an agent designed to persist knowledge across sessions. According to the maintainers, the system proactively saves what it learns, looks back through earlier interactions, and gradually develops a richer understanding of each user over time [S¹](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com). It relies on FTS5, SQLite's built-in full-text search, to index past sessions, then uses LLM-based summarisation to recall information across sessions [S¹](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com). The maintainers also note that it incorporates Honcho-based dialectic user modelling and adheres to the agentskills.io open standard [S¹](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com). The skill-creation claim is the more provocative one. After completing complex tasks, the agent reportedly generates new skills on its own and refines them as it continues to be used [S¹](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com). An integrated cron scheduler can kick off automated tasks such as scheduled reports, overnight backups, or recurring audits, pushing results to whichever platform is connected [S¹](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com). The agent is also capable of spinning up isolated subagents to handle work in parallel [S¹](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com). On the infrastructure side, the maintainers say it can operate on an inexpensive $5 VPS, a full GPU cluster, or a serverless setup with negligible idle cost [S¹](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com). It works with seven different terminal environments: local, Docker, SSH, Singularity, Modal, Daytona, and Vercel Sandbox [S¹](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com). Daytona and Modal provide serverless persistence, meaning the agent's runtime sleeps when not in use and reactivates on demand [S¹](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com). Communication is handled through Telegram, Discord, Slack, WhatsApp, Signal, or a command-line interface, all managed by one gateway process [S¹](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com). It also works with several model providers, Nous Portal, OpenRouter, OpenAI, and custom endpoints, and users can switch between them with a single command [S¹](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com). ## Why 240,000 stars is a number worth questioning ![Hermes Agent total GitHub stars](https://storage.ghost.io/c/6e/89/6e896869-22ef-4281-a213-b4c462c17cff/content/images/2026/09/chart_ac584b4c3deb1f17bfc8.png) The three trending snapshots tell a story of fast growth. On August 23, the repo had 234,445 stars and gained 443 that day [S³](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com). The next day, 235,040 stars, up 454 [S¹](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com). By September 3, it had reached 240,335 stars, gaining 533 in a single day [S²](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com). Deep research confirms a count of 240,609 stars, 49,265 forks, and 38,869 open issues [P⁴](https://github.com/nousresearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com). Those numbers deserve scrutiny. A repo created in July 2025 accumulating 240,000 stars in roughly 13 months is exceptional. It sits near the top of GitHub's most-starred repositories. The open issues count, 38,869, is also striking: roughly one open issue for every six stars. That ratio could mean active community engagement, or it could mean the project is absorbing more bug reports and feature requests than its maintainers can close. The evidence pack does not tell us which. The daily star gains fluctuate between 443 and 533 across the three snapshots [S¹](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com)[S²](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com)[S³](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com). That variability is normal for a trending repo, but the evidence pack flags that the total count is exceptionally high and may reflect non-organic activity. There is no way to confirm or deny that from the supplied sources. ## What to do about it For a developer evaluating agent frameworks, Hermes Agent's README reads like a wish list: persistent memory, autonomous skill creation, multi-platform messaging, serverless deployment, and model-agnostic switching. All of it is self-described by the maintainers, with no independent benchmarks in the evidence pack [S¹](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com). Consider a small data consultancy that wants an agent to remember client preferences across projects. The appeal of Hermes is obvious: instead of re-explaining context every session, the agent searches its own past conversations and carries forward what it learned. The question for Hermes is whether its memory system actually improves outcomes, or just stores more data. The practical test is narrow. Clone the repo, run it on a cheap VPS as the maintainers suggest, and give it a repeated task across three sessions. If it genuinely recalls and improves, the learning loop claim has legs. If it resets or hallucinates prior context, the README is aspirational. The MIT licence [P⁴](https://github.com/nousresearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com) means there is no financial risk in trying. One thing to check this week: the repo's open issues page. 38,869 open issues is a signal worth reading before you invest time in integration. ## What we don't know yet No independent review has verified the self-improving claims. The "only agent with a built-in learning loop" superlative is a marketing statement with no corroboration in the supplied sources. The cost claims, including "$5 VPS" and "nearly nothing when idle," have not been audited. The project's production readiness is unconfirmed, and Nous Research has not disclosed funding details. The star count itself raises questions about organic growth that the evidence pack cannot resolve. The next signal: whether Hermes Agent appears on GitHub's trending list again in the coming week, and whether the open issues count grows or shrinks. We'll check both against the live repository. If you want that follow-up in your inbox, subscribe and we'll send it. --- *Sources: [S1 — NousResearch/hermes-agent: The agent that grows with you](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com) · [S2 — NousResearch/hermes-agent: The agent that grows with you](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com) · [S3 — NousResearch/hermes-agent: The agent that grows with you](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com) · [P4 — NousResearch/hermes-agent](https://github.com/nousresearch/hermes-agent?ref=notatechguy.com) · [P5 — NousResearch (NousResearch)](https://huggingface.co/NousResearch?ref=notatechguy.com) · [P6 — NousResearch/hermes-agent](https://github.com/nousresearch/hermes-agent?tab=readme-ov-file&ref=notatechguy.com) · [P7 — Abdrakib/ml-research-assistant](https://github.com/Abdrakib/ml-research-assistant?ref=notatechguy.com)* ## More from Not A Tech Guy - [Gilbert + Tobin deploys ChatGPT Enterprise firm-wide](https://www.notatechguy.com/gilbert-tobin-deploys-chatgpt-enterprise-firm-wide/) - [Prompt injection attack on AI agents jumps to 28% success](https://www.notatechguy.com/prompt-injection-attack-on-ai-agents-jumps-to-28-success/) - [AIMC dashboard flags recurring flaws in AI-generated science](https://www.notatechguy.com/aimc-dashboard-flags-recurring-flaws-in-ai-generated-science/) --- *Generated from an audited evidence pack with primary-source research. Social-media items are discussion signals, not verified facts. Nothing here is financial, legal or medical advice.*