TOWeb 15 - Rewritten as a native Mac & Windows app, with AI and MCP
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TOWeb 15 is a complete rewrite of our 20-year-old desktop website builder. It is now a native app for Mac (Apple Silicon and Intel) and Windows that builds fast, accessible websites and online stores without code. New: write directly on the page, 50 complete styles in light and dark, a built-in AI assistant (local or cloud), and in the Studio edition your own AI assistant (Claude, ChatGPT or Gemini) can drive TOWeb through MCP. Works offline, publishes to any host, no subscription.
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Hi Product Hunt! I'm Yann, founder of Lauyan Software.
We've been making TOWeb since 2005, a website builder you install on your own computer. With version 15 we rewrote everything from scratch: the app, and the engine that builds the sites. It's now a native app for Mac (Apple Silicon and Intel) and Windows.
Why a desktop builder in 2026?
Your site lives on your computer: you create, edit and preview offline, and keep your files.
No subscription: the Standard edition is free with no time limit, paid editions are a one-time purchase.
No lock-in: you publish by FTP or SFTP to the web host of your choice, and switch whenever you like.
"Why not just ask an AI to code my site?" You don't have to choose: in the Studio edition, your AI assistant (Claude, ChatGPT or Gemini) drives TOWeb through MCP. The difference is what you end up with. AI-generated code is a snapshot you maintain prompt by prompt. A TOWeb site is structured data (pages, style, shop, bookings) that TOWeb turns into code at every publish: update TOWeb, republish, and every site gets the engine's accessibility, SEO and security improvements. And anyone can edit it right on the page. More here: https://www.lauyan.com/en/toweb-or-a-site-created-by-an-ai/
What's inside:
Write directly on the page, add blocks with "/", pick one of 50 complete styles (light and dark).
Online store (variants, stock, shipping zones, discount codes, EU VAT) in the e-Commerce and Studio editions, and bookings by slot or period.
Fast, search-ready sites: sitemap, structured data, hreflang, redirects.
An AI assistant for copy, pages and translation, running locally (Ollama) or in the cloud.
If you used TOWeb 5 to 14, your sites import directly, and old URLs are redirected so you keep your rankings.
Product Hunt special: code PRODUCTHUNT20 gives 20% off any paid edition until Sunday, November 15, 11:59 pm PT.
I'd love your honest feedback, especially from people who left SaaS builders: what would make you switch to a desktop app?
A 20-year-old product rewritten as a native app, that's brave. Two things I like: no subscription, and letting your own AI drive it via MCP. How does the local AI assistant compare to the cloud one for writing page copy?
@aeszn61 Thanks Agâh! Both write and translate page copy the same way inside TOWeb. The difference is where the model runs.
The local assistant runs on your own computer through Ollama: free, private, and it works offline. Quality and speed depend on the model you pick and on your machine, so it's great for short texts, titles and rewording.
The cloud assistant is faster and more fluent for longer copy and full-page drafts, especially in languages other than English.
Many users start with the cloud one for the first drafts, then use the local one for everyday edits.
Congrats Yann! Twenty years in and a full native rewrite for Mac is impressive. Publishing by SFTP to any host is how I run my own site too. When Claude drives TOWeb over MCP, can you see what it changed before you publish?
@mr_pft Thanks Pedro! Yes, and that was a must for us.
You see every change appear in TOWeb as the assistant makes it, and each step goes into the history, so you can undo it like your own edits.
The assistant can't publish on its own: it can only request it, and TOWeb asks you to approve or refuse. Before publishing, the Publish screen also lists any code the assistant added (custom code, tracking script, embeds) so you can review it.
And the Preview shows the whole site, in every language, on your computer first.
@yannougui That's exactly the right design, thanks Yann. Asking before publishing and listing any code the assistant added is what makes it safe to hand over. Good luck today!