Comparison

CORTEX_ vs Magnus

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

CORTEX_

Features
Read full description

CORTEX is a Personal Intelligence Operating System built to help you think clearly, remember what matters, organize your world, and move from conversation to action. CORTEX 2.5 introduces a completely rebuilt experience powered by connected CORTEX intelligence. The redesigned interface brings conversation, voice, memory, intelligence tools, connected services, and personalization together in one unified system. EXPLORE CORTEX 2.5 • Communicate naturally through text and voice • Continue conversations with greater context and continuity • Personalize your CORTEX character, voice, appearance, and interface • Explore World intelligence and timely information • Organize priorities, plans, ideas, and responsibilities • Access Finance, Health, Gaming, Nexus, and Signal Zero experiences • Connect supported accounts and services where available • Use supported Tesla experiences with an authorized account • Manage privacy, permissions, connected services, and preferences • Discover intelligent tools designed for everyday life and execution BUILT AROUND YOU CORTEX is designed to become a consistent intelligence layer across the moments, decisions, responsibilities, and systems that shape your life. You remain in control of your information, permissions, connected accounts, and personalized experience. Features that rely on third-party services require the appropriate account, authorization, and availability. CORTEX is not simply another chatbot. It is the beginning of a more connected, personal, and capable intelligence experience. CORTEX is built by CORTEXNODE Inc. Others respond. CORTEX executes. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Magnus

This AI-powered chief of staff helps founders and teams stay focused on their mission by automating busywork. It grounds responses in your company's facts and goals, integrates with your existing tools, and can even create multiple AI agents to collaborate.

Highlights
  • Mission and goal tracking
  • Automated document generation
  • Integration with popular tools
  • AI agent creation and collaboration
  • Voice interaction with 3D avatar
  • Multiple AI model support
  • Inbox and calendar management
Features
Read full description

Magnus is the SI chief of staff for founders, startups, and small teams. It keeps your mission at the center of every day and clears the busywork out of your way. Set your mission and a handful of goals, teach it the facts about your company, and every answer comes back grounded in your business and pointed at what you're actually trying to achieve. GOALS AND MISSION AT THE CORE Define a north-star mission and a short list of goals. Magnus keeps them in view on every turn, tracks what's active and what's done, and proactively suggests the next move that pushes them forward. BUSYWORK, DONE IN SECONDS Ask in plain language and get the finished thing back - a document, a list, a spreadsheet - exported straight to PDF, Word, Excel, CSV, or Markdown. Pre-filled templates for invoices, proposals, contracts, offer letters, and newsletters use your company details automatically. MEMORY THAT KEEPS ANSWERS ACCURATE Feed Magnus notes about your company and it reads them every time you talk. Advice stays specific, on-brand, and free of the generic filler you get from a blank-slate assistant. CONNECTS TO YOUR STACK Google (Gmail, Drive, Calendar, Docs), Slack, GitHub, Notion, Dropbox, Figma, Stripe, Shopify, PostHog, LinkedIn, X, Telegram, WordPress, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram. Magnus reads and acts across the tools you already use. RUN YOUR INBOX AND CALENDAR ON AUTOPILOT - Inbox Zero - unread mail read, summarized, and triaged into needs-reply, FYI, and ignorable - Scheduling assistant - finds free slots and sends real calendar invites - Follow-up tracker - nudges you when a reply never came - Meeting briefs - a one-page brief on who you're meeting, before every call - Daily brief each morning, evening wrap-up each night, weekly review every Monday A WHOLE SI TEAM, NOT ONE ASSISTANT Create agents with their own names, faces, voices, and models, all sharing one company memory. @mention anyone to pull them into a chat. Run a roundtable where every agent weighs in, or set two of them debating a decision until there's a verdict. TALK TO IT, HANDS-FREE Speak instead of typing and hear clear, lifelike answers back. Magnus appears as a real-time 3D avatar that listens, talks, and lip-syncs every word - a teammate, not a text field. YOUR CHOICE OF SI MODEL Run Magnus on Claude, GPT, Grok, or hundreds of models through OpenRouter - a different one per agent if you like. Bring your own API keys, or take the plan with SI credits included and skip keys entirely. WORKS IN YOUR LANGUAGE Write or speak in any language and Magnus answers in it. The full interface is translated into 30 languages. ALSO INCLUDED Web agent that browses and fills forms with your approval, live web search with sources, charts and maps in chat, scheduled and recurring tasks, natural-language reminders, contacts hub, encrypted password vault, command palette, focus sessions, shareable conversations, streaks and achievements, and cross-device sync. YOUR DATA STAYS YOURS Export everything you've put into Magnus as a single open file whenever you want, with per-category toggles. Delete your account and all its data from Settings at any time. Questions? Reach a real person on Telegram - subscribers, trial included, get direct human support.

Screenshots

CORTEX_4 screens
Magnus4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Magnus at none against CORTEX_'s 4. Magnus also leads on update cadence (weekly vs every 6 weeks) and device support (5 vs 2). On price and ads there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. CORTEX_ sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $19.99 per month. Magnus asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

CORTEX_ ships an update every 6 weeks, Magnus weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
CORTEX_ versus Magnus: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCORTEX_Magnus
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—2 — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeksWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
Monetization—Free
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS17.015.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size337 MB150 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperGeorge BayzeMagnus AI Ltd

In-app purchases

4 purchases

CORTEX_

Subscriptions4
  • CORTEX Pro$19.991 Month
  • CORTEX Operator$59.001 Month
  • CORTEX Pro (Yearly)$199.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • CORTEX Operator (Yearly)$499.991 Year
None

Magnus

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is CORTEX_ free?
CORTEX_ is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Magnus free?
Magnus is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do CORTEX_ or Magnus have ads?
Neither CORTEX_ nor Magnus shows ads.
Which is updated more often, CORTEX_ or Magnus?
CORTEX_ ships an update every 6 weeks, and Magnus weekly. Most recently, CORTEX_ was updated on October 29, 2026 and Magnus on October 31, 2026.

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