AI-FRIENDLY LOCAL DEV PLATFORM

Stop configuring.
Start building.

Podium is a Docker-based local development environment manager for PHP, Python, and Node projects — built for developers running multiple projects on one machine and for AI agents that need a stable platform to operate inside.

Install Podium Star on GitHub

Open source · Linux & macOS · Free forever

Three things, reinforcing each other

Podium does three things, and they reinforce each other.

Shares resources across every project

One podium-postgres, one podium-redis, one podium-mariadb, used by every project on the machine. Run ten projects, you've still got one of each. Cross-project hostnames resolve from the browser and from inside containers, so a Laravel app and a FastAPI service can share a database with zero networking setup.

Installs frameworks & 100+ OSS apps in one command

podium install grafana — fully configured, running, reachable at http://grafana/ in under two minutes. Or scaffold a fresh Laravel, FastAPI, Django, or Express project with podium new. No env-var spelunking. No "why isn't db:5432 resolving" debugging. No copy-pasting docker-compose files from someone's gist.

Built for AI agents

Podium's command surface is shaped around AI-driven development. Your agent gets a stable platform — shared services, hostname routing, three known runtime images — so it focuses on the actual app instead of reinventing the runtime. Works with Claude, Codex, and Gemini.

WHY PODIUM

“Couldn't I just ask my AI agent to do all this?”

You can. It'll just do it slowly, expensively, and a little differently every time. Podium is the durable substrate underneath — with or without an agent driving it.

Without Podium

AI agent alone

  • Re-derives nginx + framework wiring every session.
  • Burns 10-15k tokens scaffolding a single OSS app — and gets it almost right.
  • Each project bundles its own Postgres / Redis. Ports collide, RAM melts as you add projects.
  • No cross-project hostnames. "How does my Express app talk to my Django app?" becomes a debugging session.
  • Different result on every machine. "Worked on my laptop" returns.
  • When upstream drifts, your AI rediscovers the breakage inside your codebase.
With Podium

AI agent + Podium

  • Three tested runtime images. Agent skips the plumbing entirely.
  • ~800 tokens to install a curated OSS app. Verified end-to-end on a real fleet.
  • One shared Postgres, Redis, MariaDB, Mongo for every project. ~700MB → ~100MB RAM.
  • Stable hostnames in both directions: http://django-app/ from your browser and from your Express container.
  • Same hostnames, same credentials on every machine — laptop, teammate, VPS.
  • podium update-installer regenerates installers when upstream drifts. The platform self-maintains.

Podium isn't competing with your AI agent. It's the workshop your agent works in — tested tools, shared resources, predictable setup — so the agent (and you) skip rebuilding the workshop every time.

BUILT TO SAVE AI TOKENS

Your agent skips the plumbing.

Framework scaffolding, container networking, shared services, secret generation, and 100+ OSS app installs are all pre-baked. Your agent doesn't burn tokens rediscovering how to wire nginx + php-fpm, what env vars Mastodon needs, or how to generate VAPID keys every session.

Faster results. Cheaper bills. Fewer "ugh, why isn't this working" loops.

Two commands. Stupid productivity.

No Docker knowledge required. No config files to wrestle with.

podium install

Install a curated open-source app, fully wired up to shared services, in under two minutes.

$ podium install grafana
$ podium install gitea
$ podium install n8n
$ podium install nextcloud
$ podium install mastodon

100+ apps. Pinned versions. Tested end-to-end on a multi-machine fleet.

podium create

Describe a project in plain English. Podium builds and wires the whole environment; your AI agent only customizes it.

$ podium create "A timeclock for employees in Django"
$ podium create "A customer check-in system in Laravel"
$ podium create "An inventory tracker in Express"
$ podium create -f detailed-spec.md   # or pipe a big prompt in

Migrations, models, routes, templates — all wired to a real database, all running locally. Big prompt? Use -f file, < file, or pipe it in.

Get running in minutes.

Four steps. From zero to a real app on a local URL.

  1. 1

    Install Podium

    Pick your platform — one curl, no manual setup.

    Linux (Ubuntu / Debian)

    curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/CaneBayComputers/podium-cli/master/install-ubuntu.sh | bash

    macOS

    curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/CaneBayComputers/podium-cli/master/install-mac.sh | bash

    Arch Linux

    curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/CaneBayComputers/podium-cli/master/install-arch.sh | bash
  2. 2

    Reboot

    Picks up Docker group membership and PATH changes from the installer.

    sudo reboot
  3. 3

    Configure

    Sets up your projects directory, Docker network, hosts entries, and AI agent. Safe to re-run — existing values stay as defaults.

    podium configure
  4. 4

    Build something

    Pick one of three paths — whichever fits the project you have in mind.

    Install a curated OSS app
    podium install <app>      # click an app below for the exact command
    Have an AI agent scaffold a custom project
    podium create "A timeclock for employees in Django"
    Pull in a project you already have on GitHub
    podium create "https://github.com/your-org/your-repo"

    Clones the repo, adapts its docker-compose.yaml to use Podium's shared databases, and starts everything. Your AI agent reads the project's README and picks up where the upstream left off.

    Start blank with a framework you already know
    podium new <type> my-app

View on GitHub Read the docs

99 apps. One command each.

Click an app to see the install command. All wired to shared databases. All reachable at http://<app-name>/.

Select an app below to see its install command.