Closed-source macOS 15+ disk cleaner for developer and AI clutter from Axleno LLC, the Wyoming LLC of solo Turkish developer Ismail Celebi, launched 2026-10-17. Native Swift (AppKit/SwiftUI, no Electron). Finds Xcode DerivedData and simulators, node_modules/.venv/build output grouped by project, Ollama/LM Studio/Hugging Face models including weights stored twice, Docker/OrbStack/Colima/Podman disks, AI-agent leftovers (Claude Code/Codex sessions, agent git worktrees), file and similar-photo duplicates, and app leftovers; disk map renders rings, blocks or a 3D city, plus a Background Items viewer, SSD-wear readout, history/forecast and opt-in Autopilot. No delete function at all: moves go to the Trash with journaled Undo and a last-moment re-check; a deny list refuses Keychains, Mail, Photos, SSH keys and .env. Built-in MCP server (18 tools) puts the same limits behind HMAC-signed preview tokens and user approval; bundled `bytewell` CLI and a Claude Code plugin. Developer ID-signed and notarized, EdDSA-signed Sparkle updates, own Homebrew tap. Free tier plus $19.99 lifetime Pro; 49 versions in its first 17 days (1.3.6 at review).
Native Swift with AppKit/SwiftUI (author: 'no Electron'); bundled `bytewell` CLI and stdio MCP server inside Bytewell.app/Contents/Helpers; Sparkle updater
Ismail Celebi, solo developer operating as Axleno LLC (Sheridan, Wyoming; based in Turkey). Master's-level CS/ML background, hard of hearing. Maintains ~3 releases/day on Bytewell while running a 5-product portfolio; reddit account since 2021, GitHub since 2014.
License
Proprietary
Commercial proprietary; free tier functional forever, Pro license $19.99 one-time
Price
Freemium
Free tier $0 forever (disk map, cleanup suggestions, large files, menu bar, Undo, basic MCP tools); Pro $19.99 once, lifetime, all Macs (launch price; referral codes take it to $14.99 until Nov 30); Teams $14.99/seat once for 3+; 14-day trial, 30-day refund, Stripe
Launched
r/buildinpublic post 2026-10-17T19:35Z on the day '1.0 went out', ~2h after the bytewell.app registration
First release
Domain registered
(bytewell.app)
Last seen alive
Checks
Mechanical checks derived from the fields above. Each row is one fact; "not yet checked" means exactly that, not a failure. There is no composite score; read them together.
Track record
17 days ago
Source published
No
Release signing
Notarized
Security contact
None found
Reproducible builds
Not yet checked
Telemetry
Opt-in only
Runs elevated
Never
Auto-update channel
Signed
Recent activity
Last seen yesterday
Bytewell-1.3.6.dmg (24.8 MB, updates.axleno.com, last-modified 2026-11-02) inspected via 7z: embeds 'Developer ID Application: Axleno LLC (6CR274M4F6)'; site and FAQ claim Apple notarization, staple not verifiable from Linux.
Sparkle updates verified end to end: Info.plist SUFeedURL updates.axleno.com/bytewell/appcast.xml with SUPublicEDKey; the live appcast carries sparkle:edSignature on the enclosure and every localized releaseNotesLink; in-app strings state SURequireSignedFeed, SUVerifyUpdateBeforeExtraction, same-Developer-ID-team requirement and system profiling off.
Closed source: the only public code surfaces are the Claude Code plugin (github.com/callmecelebi/bytewell-claude-code) and the homebrew-tap cask.
No dedicated security channel or disclosure policy found (no security.txt); only general ismail@axleno.com and legal@axleno.com contacts.
Telemetry consent-gated: app asks once for anonymous usage counts (daily aggregates, rotating daily salt, no IPs stored, off switch deletes pending data); daily update check sends only app/macOS versions; weekly cancelled-license-key list carries a per-Mac code.
Site: the app answers 'with no administrator password'; Full Disk Access optional (protected folders count as unreadable); per the r/mcp post, helper tools such as xcrun/docker run with a fixed environment and do not inherit FDA.
Live Axleno product launched on r/SideProject 2026-10-29 ($29.99 lifetime): 'the developer, and this is a one-person project. I'm hard of hearing, so I know what it's like when a computer isn't built for the way you use it.' Inspired by a relative's Parkinson's diagnosis.
Axleno site lists alongside Bytewell and StillMouse: Hanuq ('a softer ritual for focus and recovery'), Kobiqo ('from documents to decisions'), ProjHQ (project command center, 'not currently live'), plus AI-integration services for SMEs and a thesis-based research app in development.
Pre-Axleno posts: Lunashots screenshot generator (r/iosdev 2026-01-03, lunashots.app, 'named after my late cat') and Arithmix killer-sudoku iOS game (r/ShowYourApp 2025-12-22, App Store id6756529833, 'my very first app').
Launch-post comparison written by the author: 'CleanMyMac: much broader for general Mac maintenance. Bytewell is narrower... DaisyDisk: great for seeing what's big, but it doesn't tell you what's safe to remove.'
Concurrent Oct-Nov 2026 wave of Mac dev-clutter cleaners; the author left detailed technical feedback on CleanMacster's launch thread with disclosed affiliation: 'Full disclosure, I build a disk app myself, so take this as one dev to another.'
Research notes
Deletion safety is the design, not a mode: no permanent-delete function in the app or the agent surface - every move goes to Trash with a journaled Undo (30 days, restores only the verified same item), each item re-verified on disk right before moving (realpath, no symlinked parents, still a known cleanup rule), and a coded deny list refuses Keychains, Mail, Messages, Photos, iCloud Drive, browser profiles, SSH/GPG keys, .env, .npmrc, .git-credentials, .pem and password databases.
Agent surface has a published threat model: `bytewell mcp` (18 tools) only lets agents act on paths the app's own suggestions marked trashable; mutations need a two-step call gated by an HMAC-SHA256 preview token (10-minute expiry, per-tool binding, invalidated by rescan); 'review' items and uninstalls additionally need in-app approval with Touch ID. The author disclosed the residual gap himself on r/mcp: the token proves a preview happened, not that a human read it.
Extreme release cadence with a feedback loop: 49 versions in 17 days (1.0 on 2026-10-17 to 1.3.6 on 2026-11-02); release notes credit suggesters by name, thread feedback shipped as fast as ~49 minutes (an r/mcp suggestion became 1.1.8), and every release gets an update comment on the original r/macapps thread.
Low privilege ask: no administrator password anywhere, Full Disk Access optional (it only completes totals for protected folders, which otherwise count as unreadable); scans read sizes and dates, never file contents, and never leave the Mac.
Privacy posture unusually specific for the cohort: no account; opt-in anonymous usage counts; offline license check; website counts visits/downloads only as daily totals with rotating salt and no stored IPs (privacy policy dated 2026-10-28).
One product in a busy one-person portfolio: Axleno LLC also lists StillMouse (launched 12 days after Bytewell), Hanuq, Kobiqo, ProjHQ ('not currently live'), SME AI-integration services and a research app; ~3 releases/day here is sustained alongside them.
Collegial competitor behavior: left constructive technical feedback on rival CleanMacster's launch thread with disclosed affiliation ('Full disclosure, I build a disk app myself').
Earliest promotion found (author-history sweep), ~2h after the domain registration, on the day '1.0 went out'. Compact but complete launch narrative: problem, trash-only design, MCP server, free/Pro pricing.
I built it because the usual suspects on my Mac were never photos. They were Xcode DerivedData, old simulator runtimes, node_modules in projects I'd forgotten, Docker's disk image and local AI models downloaded twice. — Problem statement
It never deletes permanently. There's no delete function at all, only Move to Trash, and every move has Undo. It checks each item again right before moving it. If anything changed since the scan, it stays put. — Trust signal
Fullest launch post: real-name identity ('I'm Ismail'), Axleno LLC and LinkedIn disclosed, author-written CleanMyMac/DaisyDisk comparison, Full Disk Access candor. Became the maintained thread: the author posts a per-release update comment on it, and detailed user reports (u/llqoli's profiling) produced same-day fixes.
General cleaners either don't know what these are, or want to delete things you aren't sure about. — Problem statement
It needs Full Disk Access to see the whole disk, and I know that's a big ask. Scans read sizes and dates only and never leave your Mac. No account. Anonymous usage counts exist but stay off unless you say yes. — Trust signal
CleanMyMac: much broader for general Mac maintenance. Bytewell is narrower, but it knows developer and AI clutter much better (projects, venvs, simulators, model files), and never deletes permanently. DaisyDisk: great for seeing what's big, but it doesn't tell you what's safe to remove. — Virtue
Same-day companion post on r/mcp giving the MCP server's security design in the author's own words (suggestion-only paths, HMAC preview tokens, deny list, no FDA inheritance) - the evidence for the agent-safety flags - including a self-disclosed weak spot.
The honest weak spot: the token proves a preview happened and that the confirm matches it exactly. It does not prove a human read it. A misbehaving agent could preview and confirm in one go. — Trust signal
Method post documenting the release cadence and feedback loop (users credited by name in release notes, ~49-minute turnaround examples); holds the AI-assistance admission recorded in vibe_coded.