Nearly ten years after Cyanogen wound down its Android operating-system business—ending a long, unsuccessful campaign to challenge Google's dominance—co-founder Kirt McMaster has set his sights on Microsoft's Windows. His new venture, Kora Systems, is building an operating system aimed at people whose daily work depends heavily on artificial intelligence.

On Tuesday, Kora Systems introduced a Linux-based desktop operating system that weaves AI models and autonomous agents directly into the computing experience. These agents can work across applications, reach files, and carry context from one task to the next. The software is slated to arrive in 2027 as a free-to-use desktop OS, supporting existing Intel- and AMD-powered PCs as well as machines built on Qualcomm's Snapdragon chips. Kora is developing the eponymous system with roughly 50 engineers, leaning on AI coding tools such as OpenAI's Codex and Anthropic's Claude.

Microsoft has dominated the PC operating-system market for decades, making it difficult for newcomers to gain a foothold. According to StatCounter's web traffic data, Windows accounted for about 77% of the worldwide desktop operating-system market in October, while Apple's OS X held nearly 10%. McMaster, however, doesn't believe Kora needs to fight for Windows' entire user base. Instead, he is targeting people who use AI extensively and are willing to pay for access to powerful models and services.

"Microsoft can keep its billion users," McMaster said, estimating that 45 million to 50 million people currently drive much of AI usage and revenue. He expects that market to surpass 200 million users by 2033.

Cyanogen, despite offering features beyond Google's version of Android, remained heavily dependent on Google Mobile Services—a reliance that ultimately limited its ability to build an independent ecosystem. "If you are trying to compete with an incumbent but are still reliant on them, you have no chance," McMaster said.

According to McMaster, Kora builds on an idea he pursued late in his Cyanogen tenure, when he began exploring ways to integrate third-party services directly into the operating system. With Kora, he wants AI models and agents to operate across applications and access files without being confined to individual apps.

The Palo Alto-based company was previously known as Playtron, a gaming operating-system venture led by McMaster. It rebranded as Kora in July 2025 as it pivoted toward AI. McMaster said the decision came as early companies including Perplexity and OpenAI were moving into AI-powered web browsers. He believed browsers wouldn't give AI agents enough access to a computer to carry out more complex tasks, making an operating system a better starting point. The shift also let Kora build on nearly three years of work developing Playtron's Linux-based gaming operating system, GameOS, rather than starting from scratch.

Kora is designed to let users work with different AI models and agents across applications while keeping track of conversations, documents, and other information. It also allows AI agents to operate in separate workspaces with restricted access to files and other resources.

Although McMaster has drawn on his Cyanogen experience, none of Kora's engineers worked there. Kora's software is built on Linux and uses Nix, replacing the Fedora Silverblue foundation of Playtron's earlier GameOS. While Linux and Nix are open source, McMaster said Kora's own technology—including its Cortex AI engine and desktop interface—remains proprietary. The company intends to support AI models and services from different providers, he said, though it has not committed to making its own software open source.

Gaming remains part of Kora's plans as well. McMaster said the company intends to introduce AI-powered tools that would let developers create, publish, and play games directly within the operating system. Support for Android apps is also on its roadmap.

The collaboration includes support for Qualcomm's Snapdragon X2 Elite chips. Alongside Qualcomm, Kora is working with Saudi Arabia's AI company Humain on an enterprise version of the operating system called Humain OS, expected to run on Snapdragon-powered laptops in 2027. Kora also plans to announce partnerships with PC manufacturers at a later date, though McMaster did not identify any companies or provide a specific timeline.

Kora plans to generate revenue through subscriptions that bundle access to AI models and agentic services. Its Cortex engine is designed to run AI tasks locally when possible and to use cloud-based models for work requiring more computing power.

Kora's investors include Samsung Next, Square Enix, Alumni Ventures, Polychain, VanEck, and Circle, all of which previously backed Playtron. McMaster said the company has raised additional funding since shifting its focus to AI, but he declined to disclose the total amount raised or its valuation. He said Kora has enough funding to operate for several years.