Frequently asked questions

Availability, macOS requirements, cost, the method, built-in flashcards, and your data. For how the harness teaches, read the method.

Availability

Is The Learning Harness available?

Not yet. It is in a closed beta with a small group of testers. Email hello@learningharness.org to hear when it opens; that address is the only list.

When will The Learning Harness be public?

No date has been set. The closed beta decides it. The app opens when testers can install it on a clean Mac, learn for a week, and finish every step without help from me. Email me to hear when that happens.

How much does The Learning Harness cost?

Pricing has not been decided. Ask by email and you will get a straight answer when there is one.

Requirements

What do I need to run The Learning Harness?

The current closed beta runs on Apple silicon Macs with macOS 26 and an internet connection. It uses ChatGPT sign-in. Public release requirements are not final.

Do I need to know how to use a terminal?

No. Placement, lessons, quizzes, explain-backs, roadmaps, and card reviews run in the native macOS app.

The method

How is The Learning Harness different from ChatGPT?

It keeps a record of what you know and uses it in every lesson. It teaches in prerequisite order. It tests you the same day and again the next day after sleep, and a concept that fails is taught again. It writes spaced-repetition cards only for what passed, and it never hands over an answer during practice. A chat window does none of those by default. The comparison in full is in what an AI tutor must do.

Which fields can I learn with it?

Technical fields with written sources and answers that can be marked right or wrong: software, machine learning, systems, mathematics, the sciences. Languages and exam prep for essay subjects are untested.

How much time does it take each day?

One lesson and its quiz take 20 to 40 minutes. The next day's explain-back takes about five minutes per concept, and card reviews about ten minutes. New material is paced so daily reviews stay near 50 cards. Upskilling in 2026 shows a week at that budget.

What happens when I fail a quiz or an explain-back?

The quiz is multiple choice. A pass is provisional and moves the concept on to the next day's explain-back. A failed quiz schedules no explain-back. When an explain-back fails, the harness re-teaches the exact gap on the spot and asks for the explain-back again the next day, every day until it passes. No cards are written for the concept until it passes both. The failed attempt, with its diagnosis and retry plan, stays in the record, so the re-teach and the next day's explain-back aim at the exact gap.

Flashcards

Where do I review my flashcards?

The app has built-in flashcards with spaced repetition. Your flashcards stay on this Mac. The card rules are in spaced repetition with AI.

Data and code

Where does my data live?

Your learning plan, lessons, sources, progress, cards, and review history stay on your Mac. The app sends lesson source text and your answers to the selected AI model that writes and grades the lessons and tests.

Is The Learning Harness open source?

Not yet. Publishing the code is planned. The closed beta and the public release will ship as a macOS app.

Who is behind it?

I am Ojasvi Yadav, an AI engineer in Bengaluru. I built the harness for my own learning, and I use it each day. The About page has more information.