Latchkey

Credentials for unattended AI agents. Password managers assume a human is present; Latchkey exists because yours isn't.

Install and use

pip install latchkey
latchkey bootstrap
latchkey serve
# In any agent script:
from latchkey.client import get_credential
gh = get_credential("github.com")
print(gh["password"])

Why this exists

Cron jobs, background tasks, and scheduled agents sometimes need API keys or passwords. Interactive password managers such as 1Password expect a person to approve access; Latchkey deliberately does not provide that interaction. Cron jobs don't have fingers.

Latchkey stores credentials locally and serves them to local processes through a Unix socket.

Who it's for / not for

For local, unattended processes that need credentials: scheduled agents, cron jobs, and background tasks.

Not for interactive-only use, shared or public machines, enterprise compliance requirements, or password-management workflows. Any process running as your user can read the socket — that's the design; don't run it on shared machines.

Security facts

CLI reference

latchkey init                          # Generate key + DB
latchkey bootstrap                     # init + import Chrome + verify
latchkey add <service> <user> <pass>   # Store a credential
latchkey get <service>                 # Retrieve (JSON)
latchkey list [--prefix PREFIX]        # List services
latchkey delete <service>              # Delete
latchkey serve                         # Start daemon
latchkey stats                         # Store statistics
latchkey migrate                       # Import from old credential-proxy path

Python API

from latchkey.client import get_credential, list_services, ping
from latchkey.launcher import ensure_daemon

ensure_daemon()                         # Auto-start daemon
gh = get_credential("github.com")       # → {"username": "...", "password": "..."}
svcs = list_services(prefix="git")      # → {"services": [...], "count": 2}
status = ping()                         # → {"status": "ok", "credentials": N}

Optional: Chrome bulk import

Export passwords from Chrome to Google Passwords.csv, then import the file:

latchkey import-chrome path/to.csv

Migration from credential-proxy

If you used the old version:

latchkey migrate

This moves files from ~/.hermes/credential_proxy/ to ~/.latchkey/.

Part of Works With Agents. See also ORA (task orchestrator) and Memory OS (persistent agent memory).

License

MIT