# UnfoldMyMac Desktop effects that follow your lid, and live wallpapers with something going on. Open the lid and a curtain follows it. Leave a live scene on a second display, use your own artwork, or connect a wallpaper to your Mac’s activity. The app is native to macOS, open source, and has no account or analytics. [Visit unfoldmymac.com ↗](https://unfoldmymac.com/) [GitHub ↗](https://github.com/satyajiit/UnfoldMyMac) [Apache-2.0 license ↗](https://github.com/satyajiit/UnfoldMyMac/blob/main/LICENSE) ## Availability macOS [Releases on GitHub](https://github.com/satyajiit/UnfoldMyMac/releases/latest) [Download for Mac](https://unfoldmymac.com/download/) macOS 26 or later, Apple silicon UnfoldMyMac Lid effects & live wallpapers. About the product ## A desktop that responds to your Mac UnfoldMyMac turns physical movement and optional data connections into desktop animation. Close the lid of a supported MacBook and curtains, blur, ribbons, or an image reveal follow its angle. Dynamic wallpapers work independently of the lid, including on external displays. Browse a design, preview it, and open its customization controls before applying it. A wallpaper can respond to Mac activity, a public GitHub profile, local coding sessions, or your own inputs. Creative scenes such as Hinge Garden add small interactive worlds, with separate controls for motion, sound, and other reactions. [Designs, requirements, and setup ↗](https://github.com/satyajiit/UnfoldMyMac#readme) 1. ### Find a design Browse lid effects, dynamic wallpapers, and creative scenes. Each design explains its appearance and the inputs it can use. 2. ### Preview and customize Try a design before applying it, then adjust its controls or connect an optional data source. 3. ### Make it your desktop Apply the wallpaper or scene. Use the motion and transparency settings to keep the desktop comfortable for you. ## A little movement changes the desktop Original recordings from the Mac app, with wallpaper animation and lid effects shown separately. A living wallpaper. Lights Out brings a race car and a flowing circuit to the desktop. Its counters belong to the wallpaper scene. Close the curtain. The Curtains effect follows the lid of a supported MacBook. Preview the design before applying it. UnfoldMyMac Lights Out wallpaper animation[Full image ↗](https://matterwardlabs.com/media/showcase/unfold-lights-out.webp) UnfoldMyMac native curtain-effect recording[Full image ↗](https://matterwardlabs.com/media/showcase/unfold-curtains.webp) ## Wallpapers with something to do. Some scenes follow your Mac’s activity. Others give your own images room to move. These are original recordings from UnfoldMyMac. [Browse the scenes ↗](https://unfoldmymac.com/#creative-scenes) ### Hinge Garden A glass snail tends a miniature greenhouse. The scene responds to lid movement, charger power, and optional sound. [Open recording ↗](https://matterwardlabs.com/media/showcase/unfold-hinge-garden.mp4) ### Pulse CPU load, memory, and battery readings feed a moving chrome sculpture. The readings here are from the recorded demonstration. [Open recording ↗](https://matterwardlabs.com/media/showcase/unfold-pulse.mp4) ### Daydream Your own image becomes the backdrop, with floating glass and a sticker layered over it. The original recording uses the app’s illustrated artwork. [Open recording ↗](https://matterwardlabs.com/media/showcase/unfold-daydream.mp4) Lid effects ## Give closing the lid a little character. Preview an effect, choose a design, and adjust its appearance in the Mac app. Effects follow the hinge on supported MacBooks; the website lets you explore the designs before installing. [Explore the effects ↗](https://unfoldmymac.com/#lid-effects) [![UnfoldMyMac’s native lid effects library with design categories and effect previews](https://matterwardlabs.com/media/showcase/unfold-effects-library.webp)](https://matterwardlabs.com/media/showcase/unfold-effects-library.webp) ### Peekaboo Curious characters appear around the desktop as the lid moves. [Open recording ↗](https://matterwardlabs.com/media/showcase/unfold-peekaboo.mp4) ### Current Mint and coral ribbons keep moving while the lid holds still. [Open recording ↗](https://matterwardlabs.com/media/showcase/unfold-current.mp4) ![Original Reverie design: layered paper cranes, flowers, and a crescent moon](https://matterwardlabs.com/media/showcase/unfold-reverie-art.webp) ### Reverie Original artwork from the lid-effect collection. In the app, the illustrated layers part along a curved seam. [See the collection ↗](https://unfoldmymac.com/#lid-effects) ## Features ### Lid effects Lid effects follow the angle of a MacBook lid, drawn in Metal or in native AppKit. ### Live wallpapers 20 dynamic wallpapers run independently of the lid, across displays. ### Your own artwork Import your own artwork with a choice of reveal style, adjustable depth and edge light. ### Optional connections Optional connections to local Mac metrics, a public GitHub profile, public aurora forecasts, or your own JSON over HTTP. Every one is off until you turn it on. ### Accessibility settings Reduce Motion stills continuous animation, and Reduce Transparency uses a dim-only effect with no desktop capture. ### No telemetry No telemetry, no analytics, no crash reporting and no accounts. ## Questions ### What does UnfoldMyMac need to run? macOS 26 or later on Apple silicon. There is no Intel build. Automatic lid effects read the MacBook lid-angle sensor through an undocumented Apple HID report, so support varies by model. Lid effects use the built-in display; wallpapers can use external displays too. ### How is UnfoldMyMac distributed? As a disk image from GitHub Releases and unfoldmymac.com. The disk image and the app inside it are both Developer ID signed, notarized by Apple and stapled, so the first launch works offline. ### Is UnfoldMyMac open source? Yes, under Apache-2.0. The Swift package has no third-party package dependencies. Some bundled artwork and the app's typeface keep their own licenses. ### What leaves the Mac? The Frost effect uses ScreenCaptureKit to blur the desktop; its frames stay in memory and are never saved or sent. The GitHub, aurora and custom HTTP connections each make requests to the service you point them at, and each is off until you enable it. The in-app updater contacts GitHub. ## Privacy Every data connection is off until you turn it on, and the in-app updater contacts GitHub. [Privacy policy](https://unfoldmymac.com/privacy/) ## Other products - ### [Quick Bill Generator](https://matterwardlabs.com/products/quick-bill-generator) Rent receipts, fuel bills and salary slips, generated in seconds. - ### [Device Health Monitor](https://matterwardlabs.com/products/device-health-monitor) Live CPU, battery, memory and network telemetry from the device itself. - ### [ApexTime](https://matterwardlabs.com/products/apextime) A race-inspired watch face for Wear OS. --- Canonical: https://matterwardlabs.com/products/unfoldmymac Last updated: 2026-09-29