Dune - Context-aware Mac keypad to automate workflows + meetings
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Dune is a Context-aware Keypad for Mac that sits next to your keyboard and changes what its three keys do in real time based on the app running in the foreground. Built for developers who live in GitHub, VS Code, Claude, Openclaw, and for anyone running AI agents or in back to back meetings on Zoom, Teams, and Google Meet.
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Dune
Hi! Really excited to finally share what we've been building.
I’m the founder of Project Mirage. We are a team of Designers, Developers and Engineers who have been building in Consumer Hardware for over 8 years, now building in AI Interfaces.
What is Dune and why is it called so?
Dune is a context Aware Keypad for mac that reads which app is in the foreground and automatically changes what its 3 keys do based on what you're doing. We call it Dune because a sand dune is never one thing. It shifts, quietly and constantly, shaped by whatever surrounds it.
That's what these three keys do. They observe what you're doing and become what you need, right then.
What Makes Dune Different
Dune is context-aware, meaning, its keys update automatically based on the app you are running. Unlike other keypads that lock you into setting up keyboard macros for each app, Dune comes with the most-used commands and complex workflows already built in. It is also highly customizable - you can write your own scripts and connect your own agents to trigger via Dune. It reads your active app and surfaces the three most relevant actions automatically, in real time.
The Problem & Our Solution
The way we interact with computers hasn't meaningfully changed in 45 years. We still rely on browsing through screens, clicking multiple links, and memorizing unnecessarily complex keyboard shortcuts for everyday actions. Most shortcuts are buried, forgotten, or simply never discovered, and that's not a user problem, it's a design problem.
Meanwhile, what we actually do on computers has gotten far more complex - developers juggle dozens of tools at once, and meetings now run back-to-back with controls scattered across cluttered interfaces. The friction is constant, and it adds up.
We spent months experimenting with new interface paradigms, showcased three of them at CES, and built Dune to put the best of what we learned directly in your hands. A three-key Mac keypad that reads your active app and surfaces the right actions automatically, whether you're coding, in a meeting, or getting things done.
Features & Benefits
1. Context Awareness: Dune detects which app is in the foreground and automatically updates what its 3 keys do in real time, so you never have to manually switch profiles or reconfigure anything.
2. Instant Actions: Every key is always mapped to something relevant to what you are doing. In GitHub, that means raising a PR, approving/rejecting a change. In your meeting app, joining a call, toggling your mic and controlling your camera with one tap - all while juggling a hundred different tabs.
3. Calendar Sync: Dune syncs with your calendar so you can join your meetings in a single click. Works with Zoom, Teams and Google Meet.
4. Agent Triggers: Trigger your AI agents or agentic workflows directly from your desk. An email assistant, a calendar agent, or anything else you've built in Claude can be activated from the same three keys without switching context.
5. Custom Macros and URLs: Connect any keyboard macro or URL in the Dune app and define exactly what each key does across any app or workflow.
Who Is Dune For?
Dune is built for anyone who lives on their Mac.
1. Developers: Approving a PR on GitHub takes 4-6 clicks on average. Multiply that across a full day of reviews, commits, context switches, and agent triggers and you're spending more time navigating your tools than actually building. Dune maps its three keys to the actions you reach for most in GitHub, VS Code, Claude and more, so you stay in flow.
2. People who live in Back-to-Back Meetings: One tap to join a call, a dedicated mic toggle that auto-brings your meeting window to front, and a camera key so you're never fumbling at the wrong moment. Syncs with your calendar and works with Zoom, Teams and Google Meet.
We'd especially love to see what you build with it.
Drop a comment! I’d love to hear what shortcuts have been frustrating you and share how Dune can fix that for you.
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⭐️ Important Links
Site: https://www.projectmirage.ai/
Setup Guide: https://boom-cuticle-650.notion....
All FAQs: https://www.projectmirage.ai/#du...
Demo:
@apoorv_shankar Congrats on the launch here! What's one shortcut frustration you personally fixed with Dune that surprised even you?
Dune
@swati_paliwal for me personally, join meeting with a button has been a game changer, much more powerful than I thought.
showmd
@apoorv_shankar why no shipping to Austria? 😭
Dune
@jollife was harder to find a reliable shipping partner. Will enable it soon and comment here when we start. :)
Is it reading the active window process or something deeper than that?
Dune
@darksynapse the app reads the active foreground application via macOS accessibility APIs. So it is process-level detection, we do not record or keep a track of what you're doing on your screen like some other AI Assistant apps.
Early user here - thought it would take weeks to build the muscle memory. Took about two days. Now if the keys are not there I notice immediately. Nicely done.
Dune
@mir_mubashshir glad to hear that. What are you primarily using Dune for?
What is the loudest the keys get? Hot desk life is real, and some of us have to be considerate.
Dune
@sourav_sheth1 Consider it about 2x louder than your mac keys, but that's also intentional. The button press makes you feel like you've triggered a larger action or accomplished a larger task. :)
We work at a co-working space and haven't seen people noticing the sounds of the keys, so this won't be a concern.
Is there a way to temporarily lock the keys so they stop remapping?
Dune
@joe_12 Yes, you can select custom actions for each key, lock the action so it doesn't change for any app, and even decide which apps could overpower these preset actions.
Three keys in a vertical stack rather than horizontal is interesting. Easier to reach without moving your hand off the home row.
Dune
@pranab_kumar1 Thanks. Yes, it felt like a more convenient form than what other larger macropads.
Curious what the latency looks like between the macOS accessibility API firing and the key remap completing.
Dune
@nadeem_zafar1 Detection latency is 200–600ms depending on the system — 200ms is the typical case, 600ms on the slower end of hardware we've tested. It's polling the foreground app, so there's inherent system-dependency. Such latency in generally hard to notice but we are working towards reducing this further.
This is cool. Context-aware is doing a lot of work in the pitch. Macro keypads usually trade a few saved seconds for remembered mappings so net productivity ends up a wash. How does Dune's context trigger? Active window, calendar state, time of day.... ? Congrats, and good luck :)
Dune
@keith_hiyamojo Sure agree, the difference with Dune is that it goes beyond simple keyboard shortcuts + it also displays the shortcuts in one corner of the screen so its easier to remember. Additionally, because of Agentic workflows being a thing now, a single button becomes much more powerful, and Dune is specially designed for connecting custom scripts and agents without having a complex flowchart like Interface to build new actions. Examples of more complex triggers that come pre-loaded with Dune include- Joining a meeting, Raising/Merging a PR on github, checking limits on Claude etc.
On context triggers- You can customize your actions to be triggered based on the Active Window, Calendar events and Time of the day and you could also choose which Apps could overpower an active window - for example, if you're in a zoom meeting, the 3 buttons will function as meeting control buttons and a new active window in the foreground won't affect these functions.
@apoorv_shankar V nice, the on-screen display fixes the thing I was worried about. And the smarter bit is the override logic. Most context systems break during meetings because the focus rules fight each other so letting Zoom's meeting controls outrank a foreground switch seems sensible. agent-trigger angle changes the math entirely. If a single button merges a PR or checks Claude limits, the "saved seconds per press" calculation goes out the window. Multi-step workflows collapsed to one tap. Different product now. Hope it goes well for you.
DiffSense
Waiting for an update wherein it connects via bluetooth and I could use it as my external Knuckles. Kudos to the team!
Dune
@prastik we had actually built a Bluetooth version as an early prototype too. Never thought of this use case though :P
Product Hunt
Dune
@curiouskitty This one's a lil longer-
Dune vs other Macropads-
One big difference is portability, where Dune just sticks to your mac and you don't have to carry it around in a separate bag. Apart from that, I think the breaking point to switch could be configuration fatigue. Stream Deck and MX Console are powerful but they put the work on you. Every app switch is a manual profile change you either remembered to set up or didn't. We have seen people using Stream Deck and MX Console primarily for creative applications and its very useful for those, wherein you need bunch of keyboard shortcuts mapped to multiple key combinations.
Dune on the other hand, is meant for highly recurring day to day workflow triggers and its limited to 3 at once, for not just 1-2 apps but a lot more, its designed more like an assistant than an additional keyboard. Additionally, the configuration tool in Dune is much more user friendly and is optimized for folks who want to connect their own scripts, custom agents and make much more complex workflows via Dune beyond keyboard macros + we have a bunch of pre-loaded workflow triggers.
Dev+Meeting workflows-
The ideal daily flow for a developer who's also in back-to-back meetings with Dune will be the following(and all of these come pre-loaded with Dune)-
5 minutes before meeting - find a shortcut to join meeting(since its already synced with your calendar), send a message you're running late via email or dismiss notification
During the meeting - toggle mic, toggle camera, trigger Granola
While juggling between VS Code, Claude and Github where the 3 actions look like this-
VSCode- Explain, Comment, Compile
Github - Approve PR, Request changes, Close
Claude- Accept suggestion, reject suggestion, Check limits
Combining this with custom agents and tools people already use could make it even more powerful - for example an Email agent built on Openclaw/Claude that surfaces your most important emails at the start of the day, an agent that triggers after the meeting listing the most important points covered in the meeting and much more. Streamdeck could potentially add more shortcuts for each application you're running but won't really be necessary for most people.