Reddit account cultivation for indie developers. Uses AppleScript to control real Chrome — undetectable by anti-bot systems. Checks karma, finds rising posts...
Build and maintain Reddit presence by controlling the user's real Chrome browser via AppleScript. No Playwright, no Selenium, no API tokens.
Claude Code → osascript → Chrome (real browser, logged in) → Reddit
Chrome multi-profile can cause AppleScript to not see windows. Always detect first:
WINDOWS=$(osascript -e 'tell application "Google Chrome" to return count of windows' 2>/dev/null)
if [ "$WINDOWS" = "0" ] || [ -z "$WINDOWS" ]; then
echo "Use Method 2 (System Events + Console)"
else
echo "Use Method 1 (execute javascript)"
fi
Works when count of windows > 0.
osascript -e 'tell application "Google Chrome" to tell active tab of first window to set URL to "https://www.reddit.com/r/SideProject/rising/"'
# Run JS that writes result to document.title
osascript -e 'tell application "Google Chrome" to tell active tab of first window to execute javascript "fetch(\"/api/me.json\",{credentials:\"include\"}).then(r=>r.json()).then(d=>{document.title=\"R:\"+JSON.stringify({name:d.data.name,karma:d.data.total_karma})})"'
# Wait, then read title
sleep 2
osascript -e 'tell application "Google Chrome" to return title of active tab of first window'
osascript -l JavaScript -e '
var chrome = Application("Google Chrome");
var tab = chrome.windows[0].activeTab;
tab.execute({javascript: "(" + function() {
// Complex JS here — no escaping needed
fetch("/r/SideProject/rising.json?limit=10", {credentials: "include"})
.then(r => r.json())
.then(d => {
var posts = d.data.children.map(p => ({
title: p.data.title.substring(0, 60),
score: p.data.score,
comments: p.data.num_comments,
id: p.data.name,
url: "https://reddit.com" + p.data.permalink
}));
document.title = "POSTS:" + JSON.stringify(posts);
});
} + ")();"});
'
When AppleScript can't see Chrome windows (multi-profile bug), use keyboard automation.
python3 -c "
import subprocess
js = '''(async()=>{
let resp = await fetch('/api/me.json', {credentials: 'include'});
let data = await resp.json();
document.title = 'R:' + JSON.stringify({name: data.data.name, karma: data.data.total_karma});
})()'''
subprocess.run(['pbcopy'], input=js.encode(), check=True)
"
osascript -e '
tell application "System Events"
tell process "Google Chrome"
set frontmost to true
delay 0.3
-- Cmd+Option+J = open/close Console
key code 38 using {command down, option down}
delay 1
-- Select all + Paste + Enter
keystroke "a" using {command down}
delay 0.2
keystroke "v" using {command down}
delay 0.5
key code 36
delay 0.3
-- Close Console
key code 38 using {command down, option down}
end tell
end tell'
sleep 3
osascript -e '
tell application "System Events"
tell process "Google Chrome"
return name of window 1
end tell
end tell'
Get username, karma, verify login using /api/me.json.
For each target subreddit, fetch rising posts:
/r/{subreddit}/rising.json?limit=10
Look for:
Rules:
Get modhash, then post each comment with 4s delay between posts.
// Get modhash first
let me = await fetch("/api/me.json", {credentials: "include"}).then(r=>r.json());
let uh = me.data.modhash;
// Post comment
let body = new URLSearchParams({
thing_id: "t3_xxxxx", // post fullname
text: "Your comment here",
uh: uh,
api_type: "json"
});
let resp = await fetch("/api/comment", {
method: "POST",
credentials: "include",
headers: {"Content-Type": "application/x-www-form-urlencoded"},
body: body.toString()
});
let result = await resp.json();
document.title = "POSTED:" + JSON.stringify(result);
Extract the comment ID from the response HTML: look for id-t1_XXXXXXX in the result.
ALWAYS end with a summary table containing direct links to every comment posted.
The comment link format is:
https://www.reddit.com/r/{subreddit}/comments/{post_id}/comment/{comment_id}/
Where:
{subreddit} = the subreddit name{post_id} = the post ID (from thing_id minus the t3_ prefix){comment_id} = extracted from the POST response (the t1_XXXXXXX value, minus t1_ prefix)Example summary table:
| # | Sub | Post | Comment Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | r/SideProject | "Post title" | https://www.reddit.com/r/SideProject/comments/abc123/comment/xyz789/ |
| 2 | r/ClaudeAI | "Post title" | https://www.reddit.com/r/ClaudeAI/comments/def456/comment/uvw012/ |
This lets the user bookmark, follow up on replies, and track which comments got traction.
| Priority | Subreddit | Why |
|---|---|---|
| High | r/SideProject | Project launches, very welcoming |
| High | r/indiehackers | Revenue/growth discussions |
| Medium | r/ClaudeAI | AI tooling audience |
| Medium | r/coolgithubprojects | Open source visibility |
| Medium | r/startups | Startup discussions |
| Medium | r/entrepreneur | Business insights |
| Medium | r/opensource | Technical audience |
| Action | Limit |
|---|---|
| Between API calls | 2+ seconds |
| Between posts | 4+ seconds |
| Per session | Max 5 comments |
| Daily | 10-15 comments max |
| Karma | Unlocks |
|---|---|
| 100+ | Can post in most subreddits |
| 500+ | Reduced spam filter triggers |
| 1000+ | Trusted contributor status |
| 5000+ | Community recognition |
| Problem | Solution |
|---|---|
count of windows = 0 | Chrome multi-profile bug → use Method 2 |
| "Allow JavaScript" not working | Restart Chrome after enabling |
| Modhash expired | Re-fetch from /api/me.json |
| 403 response | Rate limited, wait 5+ minutes |
| Comment not appearing | Check for shadowban: visit profile in incognito |
| Tool | Problem |
|---|---|
| Playwright | Sets navigator.webdriver=true, detected instantly |
| Selenium | Same detection issue |
| Puppeteer | Same detection issue |
| curl + API | IP blocked by Reddit after few requests |
| AppleScript | Controls real Chrome, undetectable, cookies included |
ZIP package — ready to use