Open Manus AI: EASY Install Guide and Is it REALLY Good?

Key Concepts

Manus AI, Open Manus, AI Agents, Automation, Web Browsing, SEO Analysis, Virtual Environment, Conda, GPT-4, API Keys, Browser Use, AI Agent Frameworks, User Interface, Code Execution.

Manus AI and Open Manus: Automating Repetitive Tasks

The video discusses Manus AI, a closed-source AI agentic system gaining popularity for automating repetitive tasks. Examples include a 7-day Japan trip planner and an AI solutions searcher for the fashion industry. Manus AI prepares a plan, browses relevant web pages, and summarizes the information into a report. The key drawback is its closed-source nature, making it inaccessible for free use.

Open Manus: An Open-Source Alternative

Open Manus is presented as an open-source alternative to Manus AI, which can be run locally. The video demonstrates its capabilities with an example of analyzing a website and generating an SEO audit report. Open Manus is described as a trending repository with significant popularity.

Installation and Setup of Open Manus (Step-by-Step)

The video provides a step-by-step guide to installing and running Open Manus:

1. Conda Environment: Download and install Conda. Create a virtual environment using the command: conda create -n open_manus python=<version>. Activate the environment with conda activate open_manus.
2. Git Clone: Clone the Open Manus repository using git clone <repository_path>.
3. Navigate to Directory: Navigate to the Open Manus directory.
4. Install Requirements: Install the required packages using pip install -r requirements.txt.
5. Install Playwright: Install Playwright using playwright install.
6. Configuration: Rename config_example.toml to config.toml in the config folder.
7. Edit Configuration: Open config.toml and configure the model (e.g., GPT-4) and API keys for both the main language model and the vision model (GPT-4 Vision).
8. Run Application: Execute the application using python main.py.

Testing and Results

The video demonstrates running Open Manus with two tasks:

1. SEO Analysis: Asked to visit a website and perform an SEO analysis. The agent successfully opened the website, identified pages, and suggested using tools like Semrush or Ahrefs for detailed reports.
2. London Travel: Asked to find places to visit in London. The agent retrieved URLs from Google search and opened each page. However, it only provided the URLs without a summary, and the process terminated prematurely. The presenter suggests this might be due to token limits or model limitations.
3. Diet Dashboard: Asked to create a diet dashboard. The agent successfully generated code for a Flask application, demonstrating its code generation capabilities.

Limitations and Future Improvements

The video acknowledges that Open Manus has limitations and requires further development. The presenter suggests experimenting with different models (e.g., Claude Sonnet) and adjusting the maximum token limit. Despite its current shortcomings, Open Manus is considered a good starting point.

Technical Details and Underlying Framework

Open Manus utilizes "Browser Use," a Python package for navigating websites using natural language. Manus AI is described as a system of multiple AI agents working together with tools like Browser Use and internet search. The workflow involves agents for internet search, code execution, and formatting. The presenter suggests that similar functionality can be replicated using other AI agent frameworks.

User Interface and Comparison

A key advantage of Manus AI over Open Manus is its user interface. Open Manus requires running the application via the terminal. The presenter expresses hope for the rapid growth of Open Manus, given its popularity.

Related Content

The presenter recommends watching another video about "Browser Use Automatic Agent," which is capable of browsing and providing results.

Conclusion

Open Manus is a promising open-source alternative to Manus AI for automating web-based tasks. While it has limitations, its open-source nature and active development community make it a valuable tool for those interested in exploring AI agents and automation. The key takeaways are the installation process, configuration requirements, and the potential for further development and improvement.