Obsilo Is Now Vault Operator: The Obsidian AI Agent, Compared
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Obsilo Agent is now called Vault Operator. The plugin was renamed in release 2.7.3 on May 12, 2026, and obsilo.ai now forwards to the Vault Operator site. In Obsidian, search the community plugins for Vault Operator; the listing no longer uses the name Obsilo.
Vault Operator is a free, open-source AI agent for your vault. It plans a task, searches and reads your notes, and writes changes after you approve them. It runs on your own API key, your ChatGPT or GitHub Copilot subscription, or a local model through Ollama or LM Studio. It works on desktop only.
We make SystemSculpt, another Obsidian AI plugin. Everything below about Vault Operator comes from its own README, docs, manifest and release notes, linked at the end. Facts checked November 3, 2026.
Side by side
| Criteria | Vault Operator (formerly Obsilo) | SystemSculpt |
|---|---|---|
| Best at | An agent that plans, searches and edits your vault, with memory and calls into your other plugins | AI chat that works on your notes, plus audio notes and related notes |
| AI it runs | Your own key for Anthropic, OpenAI, Gemini, OpenRouter, Azure or Bedrock; ChatGPT Plus or Pro and GitHub Copilot sign-in; local models through Ollama or LM Studio | Your installed, signed-in Claude Code or Codex on desktop; hosted SystemSculpt AI on desktop and mobile; no local models or own API keys |
| Edits your notes | Yes. Every write asks for approval unless you turn on auto-approve for that kind of action; changes can be undone from the chat | Yes. New chats start in Auto: hosted AI creates and edits without asking, and asks before moving or deleting; Ask mode asks before every change |
| Search by meaning | Yes: a local vector index with full-text search, link expansion and a local reranker; needs an embedding model you set up | Yes: Similar Notes and meaning matches in vault search; indexing is hosted and uses credits |
| Where chats are saved | In its own history database, not as notes | As Markdown notes in your vault |
| Audio and YouTube | Not listed | Record in Obsidian, transcribe audio to Markdown or SRT, turn long audio or a YouTube video into a note; hosted, uses credits |
| PDFs and documents | PDF ingest into source notes with links back to each paragraph; writes DOCX and XLSX | PDFs and images to Markdown notes; hosted, uses credits |
| MCP | Connects to MCP servers, and runs as an MCP server for ChatGPT, Claude Desktop and Perplexity | Its MCP server connects AI apps to your SystemSculpt account, not to your vault |
| Phone and tablet | No, desktop only | Yes, chat with hosted SystemSculpt AI; Claude Code and Codex are desktop only |
| Price | Free; you pay your model provider | Free to install; $9 a month or $90 a year for hosted AI; 500 one-time starter credits for eligible new accounts, no card |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT plugin; hosted service closed source |
| Downloads | 15,613 | 38,809 |
| Latest release | 3.8.2, September 15, 2026 | 6.18.10, November 3, 2026 |
"Not listed" means Vault Operator's README and docs don't describe the feature as of the check date. Downloads are Obsidian directory totals and include automatic updates.
SystemSculpt is free to install. Monthly is $9/mo; Yearly is $90/yr.
Where Vault Operator fits better
Vault Operator suits you if you want an agent that works through your vault on its own keys and models, including fully offline with a local model. It remembers context across chats, runs several chats in tabs, and can call installed plugins such as Dataview, Tasks and Excalidraw. Each task saves checkpoints in a separate git repository, so Undo all changes puts the files back.
Its PDF ingest writes a source note with a block ID on each key claim, so every fact links back to its paragraph. It can also share your vault with ChatGPT, Claude Desktop or Perplexity as an MCP server.
Choose Vault Operator if you want local models or your own API keys, approval before every write by default, or an agent your other AI apps can reach over MCP.
Where SystemSculpt fits better
SystemSculpt works on your phone. Its chat runs hosted SystemSculpt AI on iPhone, iPad and Android and can create and edit notes there, where Vault Operator is desktop only. On desktop it runs your own signed-in Claude Code or Codex, with no SystemSculpt plan.
It also puts audio and documents in the same plugin: record voice notes and meetings, transcribe audio files to Markdown or SRT, turn a YouTube video into a note, and convert PDFs and images to Markdown. Chats and transcripts are saved as Markdown notes in your vault, so you can read, search and link them like any other note.
Choose SystemSculpt if you want AI chat on your phone, transcription and PDF notes in one plugin, or chats kept as notes in your vault.
Can you use both?
Yes. They install side by side and work on the same Markdown files. You could keep Vault Operator for local models and agent tasks on desktop, and use SystemSculpt for audio, PDFs and chat on your phone.
Questions
What happened to Obsilo? It was renamed Vault Operator in release 2.7.3 on May 12, 2026. It's the same plugin by the same developer, now with the plugin ID vault-operator, and obsilo.ai forwards to the new site. Search for Vault Operator in Obsidian's community plugins.
Is Vault Operator free? Yes. It has no paid plan or account. You pay only the model provider whose key you add, or nothing with a local model through Ollama or LM Studio.
Does Vault Operator work on mobile? No. Its manifest marks it desktop only. SystemSculpt's chat works on iPhone, iPad and Android with hosted SystemSculpt AI.
Does Vault Operator need my approval before it edits notes? By default, yes: every write asks first. You can turn on auto-approve separately for reading, writing, plugin actions, commands, MCP and the web. Changes are checkpointed, and Undo all changes reverts them.
Does Vault Operator work offline? Yes, with a local model through Ollama or LM Studio. Cloud providers need internet.
Does SystemSculpt work with local models or my own API key? No. SystemSculpt chat runs your own Claude Code or Codex, or hosted SystemSculpt AI. For local models or your own keys, Vault Operator is the better choice.
Do I keep my notes if I stop using either plugin? Yes. Your notes stay Markdown files in your vault either way. Vault Operator keeps its chats in its own history database, while SystemSculpt's chats, transcripts and converted documents are Markdown notes.
Comparing more plugins? Read the best Obsidian AI plugins in 2026 or SystemSculpt and other Obsidian AI plugins.
Try SystemSculpt
Install SystemSculpt free from Obsidian's community plugins, open chat, and pick Claude Code, Codex or SystemSculpt in the line below the message box. Compare plans.
Sources
Checked November 3, 2026: Vault Operator README, manifest, providers, memory and history, 2.7.3 rename release, 3.8.2 release and website; SystemSculpt source code (MIT), release notes and pricing; download totals from the Obsidian directory statistics.