Soft glowing colonies of a continuous cellular automaton spread in rings, graze their way across the dish and shed little gliders that wander off on their own.
Soft glowing colonies of a continuous cellular automaton spread in rings, graze their way across the dish and shed little gliders that wander off on their own.
In the app you can adjust the colours, creature size and speed. It runs natively on your Mac, drawn live in real time – no video, never quite the same twice.
Use it on your Mac
- Get SCRNSVRS free from the Mac App Store.
- Select Lenia in the library.
- Click Set as Screensaver or Set as Wallpaper – or both.
Preview free · macOS Tahoe 26 or laterNeed a hand? Read the setup guide.
Lenia FAQ
How do I set Lenia as my screensaver on a Mac?
Install SCRNSVRS free from the Mac App Store, select Lenia in the library and click Set as Screensaver. macOS starts it whenever your Mac is idle, exactly like a built-in screensaver.
Can I use Lenia as a live wallpaper?
Yes. Click Set as Wallpaper in SCRNSVRS and Lenia plays on your desktop behind your windows and icons. You can use it as screensaver and wallpaper at the same time.
Is Lenia free?
Lenia is included in SCRNSVRS Unlimited. It's free for your first 7 days; after that Unlimited is $1.99/month or $9.99/year (€1.99/month or €9.99/year) for every screensaver, including new ones. It can also come up in Free this month, when 25 premium screensavers are free for everyone.
Is Lenia a video loop?
No. Lenia is rendered live on your Mac with Metal, so it never repeats and stays sharp on any display size. The clip on this page is a screen recording of the real thing.
Will Lenia slow down my Mac or drain the battery?
No. SCRNSVRS drops to 30 fps on battery and stops rendering when the wallpaper is covered by a full-screen app, so Lenia costs next to nothing in everyday use.
Which Macs does Lenia run on?
Lenia needs macOS Tahoe 26 or later.
