Use Max mode in Rovo Desktop

Max mode is Rovo’s new reasoning mode that takes on complex, multi‑step tasks so your team doesn’t have to. Instead of steering AI through every prompt, describe the outcome you want - like a cross‑project report, a competitive brief, or a project plan - and Max handles the steps, reads errors, adjusts its approach, and delivers an output.

Before you begin

• Make sure you have access to Rovo Desktop. Get started with Rovo Desktop

• Max mode uses Rovo Dev to run tasks locally on your machine, including editing files and running commands. To use Max mode, you’ll need:

  • Rovo Dev CLI installed. How to install and run Rovo Dev CLI on your device

  • Rovo Dev credits through a Rovo Dev Standard subscription. How to request access to Rovo Dev Standard

Use Max mode in Rovo Desktop

1. Open Rovo Desktop on your computer.

2. Select Max in the left sidebar.

3. Begin prompting using Max mode.

What can you do with Max mode in Rovo Desktop?

Max mode is optimized for handling complex multi-step requests. Max mode is equipped to formulate a plan and execute on your most complex requests. Ask it to generate a report using dozens of sources, edit a list of tickets, or scan a large repository for compliance issues.

On Rovo Desktop specifically, Max mode has an expanded toolset to handle local file manipulations and command line based operations. Use Max mode to help accelerate any task requiring local files, whether those files are documents, spreadsheets, PDFs, source code or something else entirely.

Here are some sample prompts you can try to get started:

• “Check on all the projects I’m following and create a Confluence page with actions I need to take.”

• “Take this list of 30 bugs and check whether fixes have already been made for them.”

• “Analyze these 5 spreadsheets with quarterly financial data and update the Q3 report.”

• “Find all the examples of caching in this code repository and write the results in a slide deck.”

What to know before using Max mode

Since Max mode gives Rovo the capability to manipulate local files and run commands through command line interface, there are several unique risks to this feature that you should be aware of:

1. Max mode on Rovo Desktop is powerful, and enables Rovo to run code and commands locally, some of which could involve destructive and non-recoverable actions, like file deletions, system modifications, or date exfiltration. Use caution when using Max mode on Rovo Desktop.

2. By default Max mode will ask your approval as the user of Rovo Desktop for all sensitive actions, including creating, editing, and deleting files, calling third-party tools and reading documents. The only actions that will not trigger approval requests by default are those that run in the context of a location you’ve explicitly provided Rovo to work in (for example, setting /Users/example/projects as the current working directory will allow Rovo to make changes to files within that directory).

3. You can turn Auto approve on, in which case all actions will run without explicit human approval. Rovo will act autonomously on your behalf based on the request. Use extreme caution in this mode. By enabling this feature, you assume full responsibility for all outcomes, including data loss or unintended system changes.