# Migrate from a hosted AI agent to an open-source platform you own

> You can leave a hosted AI agent without losing the work that matters. Kortix is the open-source AI Operating System, and your agents, skills, memory, and connectors live as files in one git repo you own. Here is what moves, what does not, and the commands that do it.

URL: https://opensourceaiagentplatform.com/migrate-from-a-hosted-ai-agent

## The commands that move you across

Each panel is a command from the Kortix docs. Run them in order.

### Install and scaffold

`terminal`

```sh
$ curl -fsSL https://kortix.com/install | bash
$ kortix init my-agent && cd my-agent
$ kortix ship
```

Source: https://kortix.com/docs/cli

### Bring your files in

`terminal`

```sh
$ kortix projects clone <project_id> my-project
$ cd my-project
$ git checkout -b my-migration
$ git push origin my-migration
```

Source: https://kortix.com/docs/git

### Re-point your connectors

`terminal`

```sh
$ kortix connectors apps gmail
$ kortix connectors add gmail --provider composio --app gmail --apply
$ kortix connectors connect gmail
$ kortix connectors sync
```

Source: https://kortix.com/docs/connect/connectors

### Run it on your own box

`terminal`

```sh
$ kortix self-host init --domain kortix.example.com
$ kortix self-host start
```

Source: https://kortix.com/docs/host

## What moves, and what does not

A hosted AI agent keeps the machine that does the work, and the configuration that shapes it, on the vendor's side. When you move to Kortix, the parts you own are files, and the parts that were never files you rebuild by hand.

Four things move, as files, into one repo you own:

- Agents. An agent is `agents/<name>.md` (behavior) plus an `agents.<name>` block in `kortix.yaml` (governance).
- Skills. A skill is a folder, `skills/<name>/SKILL.md`, loaded when a task needs it.
- Memory. Company memory is files in the repo that accumulate, versioned like the rest.
- Connectors and triggers. Connectors are declared under `connectors:` in `kortix.yaml`, and triggers under `triggers:`.

Four things do not come across, and the hosted product's own pages say why:

- The host's own session state. Claude Cowork saves your sessions and files to your Claude account and runs on Anthropic's servers ([Claude Cowork help](https://support.claude.com/en/articles/13345190-get-started-with-claude-cowork)).
- The environment as an object. In ChatGPT's cloud environments, an environment is a saved setup inside the ChatGPT workspace, and the docs say saved state does not replace source control ([ChatGPT cloud environments](https://learn.chatgpt.com/docs/environments/cloud-environments)).
- The model choice. A hosted agent picks the model for the task. Manus runs each task on its own computer and returns the work product in the app, on a credit model ([Manus docs](https://manus.im/docs/introduction/welcome), [Manus plans](https://manus.im/docs/introduction/plans)).
- The connection grants. A connection is an account you authorize. The apps are the same; the grant is not, and you authorize it again on the new platform.

## Run the move in five steps

1. Install the CLI and scaffold a project, in the Install and scaffold panel. This writes the `kortix.yaml` manifest and the starter agents.
2. Write your agents and skills as files. Recreate the prompts and skills you used on the hosted agent under `agents/` and `skills/`. They are text, so the wording you already wrote carries over.
3. Commit and push, with `kortix ship` in a new project or `kortix projects clone` for a project you already have. Push your branch and the repo is yours.
4. Re-point the connectors, in the Re-point your connectors panel. Install each app, authorize your account, then set what each call may do. Connector credentials are brokered server-side and never enter the machine.
5. Place the system. Run it on Kortix Cloud, in your VPC, or on your own on-prem network, and self-host is free. The [self-hosting guide](/self-hosting) lists every command.

A connector is one small block in the repo:

```yaml
connectors:
  - slug: gmail
    name: Gmail
    provider: composio
    app: gmail
```

## What you own afterward

Kortix is the open-source AI Operating System: your agents, their skills, your company memory, and every connector live in one git repo you own. One isolated sandbox per session. Each session has its own isolated machine and branch. Session work reaches `main` through a change request, and merge is default-deny for agents. An agent can edit its own configuration on its session branch and propose the change. A person approves it. Any model provider with your own keys, or the ChatGPT plan you already pay for, or sign in with your OpenCode Console account for OpenCode Zen and Go.

The repo also carries the rest of the system: [agent management](/ai-agent-management) across roles and teams, and the review gate that makes parallel work safe. A platform is not the same as a framework, which is code you build with, and [platform vs framework](/open-source-ai-agent-platform-vs-framework) draws that line. If the category is still new, [the definition page](/what-is-an-open-source-ai-agent-platform) sets the terms.

For the three-command start, read [Getting started with open-source Kortix: three commands to your first session](https://kortix.com/blog/getting-started-with-kortix). For what a hosted agent keeps on its side, read [Kortix vs Manus](https://kortix.com/blog/kortix-vs-manus).

_FAQ_

## Questions before you switch

What a hosted agent lets you take, and what it does not.

### Can I export my agents and skills from a hosted agent?

There is no export button, because the configuration was never a file. What you wrote as prompts and skills is text you can carry over by hand into `agents/` and `skills/`. Kortix keeps them as files in a repo you own.

### Will my connectors keep working after the move?

The apps are the same, and the grant is not. You install each connector in Kortix and authorize your account again, then set each call to Allow, Ask or Block. Connector credentials are brokered server-side and never enter the machine.

### Do I lose my past sessions and outputs?

The host keeps its own session history on its servers. Cowork saves sessions and files to your Claude account, and ChatGPT's cloud environments are saved in the ChatGPT workspace. Download the outputs you want to keep and add them to the new repo.

### Will the model change?

It can. A hosted agent picks the model for the task, and on Kortix you pick per agent, per session or per message. Any model provider with your own keys. Or the ChatGPT plan you already pay for. Or sign in with your OpenCode Console account for OpenCode Zen and Go.

### Is the move one click, or lossless?

No. There is no migration button, and the host's session history does not come with you. The move is real work: write your agents as files, re-authorize the connectors, and push the repo. What you get back is a system you own.

## Own the system instead of renting the agent

Start with one job and move the rest as you go.

[Try Kortix](https://kortix.com) · [Read the self-hosting guide](https://opensourceaiagentplatform.com/self-hosting)