GitHub - MrCordeiro/barra-ai: No-Nonsense AI Browser Extension

3 min read Original article ↗

Welcome to Barra AI, the most straightforward, no-frills, barebones AI browser extension you'll ever need. We've cut the fluff and focused on raw AI power. No subscriptions, no cute robots, just you and the model of your choice — including local, offline models via Ollama with no API key required.

Type /ai followed by your prompt in any input or text field, press Tab, and the extension will fetch a streamed response from your selected model, updating the field as chunks arrive.

("barra" means "slash" in Portuguese, as in /ai)

Features

🦖 Dino-powered simplicity

  • No popups, no sidebars: Type /ai followed by your prompt in any text field and hit Tab. Boom! Instant AI response.
  • Streaming output: Watch the model response appear in real time.
  • Works with Lexical editors: Includes Reddit, WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, and Threads.
  • Offline / no-key mode: Run fully local models via Ollama — no API key, no internet, no data leaving your machine.
  • Cloud models too: OpenAI GPT, Anthropic Claude, and Google Gemini are all supported with your own API key.
  • Client-side processing: All data stays in your browser's local storage. API requests go directly from your browser to the provider — no middleman. Doubt us? Just check the code, we are open-source!
  • Free and open-source: While all browsers will soon offer this feature natively, Barra AI gives you a taste of the punk future now. And for free!

TLDR

  • 🚫 NO Subscriptions
  • 🚫 NO Cute Robots
  • 🚫 NO Middlemen
  • 🚫 NO Bullshit
  • ✅ Works offline with local models (Ollama)
  • ✅ Dinosaur icon! Because dinosaurs are cool – and so are you.

Install

Chrome extension

Usage

  1. Install the Extension:
  • Download and install the Barra AI extension from the Chrome Web Store.
  1. Configure your model:

Option A — Local model (no API key needed):

  • Install Ollama and pull at least one model (e.g. ollama pull llama3.2).
  • Open the extension settings, enable Local model, and follow the setup steps.
  • The extension will connect to Ollama at http://localhost:11434 by default.

Option B — Cloud model:

  • Open the extension settings page.
  • Enter your API key for OpenAI, Anthropic, or Google Gemini.
  • Select your preferred model from the dropdown.
  1. Usage:
  • In any text input or field, type /ai followed by your prompt.
  • Press the Tab key.
  • The field's content is replaced progressively as the streamed response arrives.

Limitations

  • Some highly customized editors may still block synthetic paste events or override key handling.
  • If a page aggressively remaps Tab, click the target field again and retry /ai + Tab.

Development

  1. Fork the repository
  2. Run npm run build
  3. Open chrome://extensions
  4. Check the Developer mode checkbox
  5. Click on the Load unpacked extension button
  6. Select the folder barra-ai/dist