Styx vs GitKraken Kepler
GitKraken Kepler and Styx are both agentic development environments: several coding agents in parallel, each in a git worktree, with review before anything merges. Kepler is built around tasks that start in your backlog and span several repositories; Styx around every project in one window and keeping agents away from your keys.
Side by side
| Styx | GitKraken Kepler | |
|---|---|---|
| Runs on | Mac (Apple silicon); Windows coming | Mac, Windows, Linux |
| Agents | Claude Code, Codex, Gemini CLI, Cursor | Claude Code, Codex, Copilot, Cursor, Gemini, OpenCode, any ACP agent |
| Price | Free | Free in public preview with a GitKraken account |
| Each agent isolated | Own git worktree and branch | A git worktree per repository, per task |
| Scope of one window | Every project you work on | One task can span several repositories |
| Review | Diff with per-hunk accept and reject; checks before landing | Diff overlay, branch sync, AI commit composing, PR review queue |
| Your editor | Imports recents, keybindings and theme; opens files back in it | Hands off to GitKraken Desktop |
| Secrets | In the macOS Keychain; agents get scoped, expiring access | Not part of its docs |
| Production access | Agents ask; you approve for a set time; Touch ID for live systems | Permission prompts by default; no deploy approval documented |
| Audit log | Every request, approval and use, append-only | Not part of its docs |
| Deploy targets | Vercel, AWS, Google Cloud, Supabase, GitHub, SSH | Not part of its docs |
| Cloud workspaces | No: everything runs on your Mac | No hosted cloud; SSH or WSL |
| Team collaboration | No | Team features not shipped yet |
| Issue tracker | No | Jira, Trello, Linear, GitHub, GitLab, Azure DevOps, Bitbucket |
“Not part of its docs” means we could not find it in GitKraken Kepler's own material on 29 September 2026, not that it can never be done with it. Tell us at hello@heystyx.com if something here is wrong and we will fix it.
Where GitKraken Kepler is ahead
- Tasks across repositories. One task opens a worktree in each repository it needs, with shared instructions.
- Starts from your backlog. It pulls assigned issues and pull requests from most trackers and git hosts.
- Every platform. It runs on Windows and Linux as well as the Mac.
- More agents. Any agent that speaks the Agent Client Protocol, including Copilot and OpenCode.
Where Styx is different
Agents never hold your keys
Useful agents need real things: a deploy, a database, a server. In Styx the credentials stay in your Mac’s Keychain. When an agent wants production, it stops and asks; you approve it for a set time, with Touch ID for anything live, and the access ends on its own. Every request, approval and use goes into a log nobody can edit.
Every project, one window
Styx is built around switching between everything you work on: each project, its agents and the ones waiting on you, one keystroke apart. Nothing is organised around a single repository.
On top of your editor
Styx brings in your editor’s recent projects, keybindings and theme, and opens any file back in it with one key. It is not trying to be the place you write code.
One honest limit: this is a guardrail, not a sandbox. Agents run as you, on your Mac, and an agent that deliberately goes around Styx’s tools is not stopped by them.
Which to choose
Choose GitKraken Kepler if your tasks span several repositories and start in Jira or Linear, or you already live in GitKraken. Choose Styx if you want a finished Mac app across all your projects, with agents asking before they touch production.
Download Styx for Mac. It is free. See every comparison.
Questions
Is Styx a GitKraken Kepler alternative?
Yes. Both are agentic development environments for running coding agents in parallel worktrees. Kepler is stronger on multi-repository tasks and issue trackers; Styx on production access and working across projects.
Is Kepler finished?
Kepler was in public preview on 29 September 2026, free with a GitKraken account; pricing after the preview had not been announced.
What is an agentic development environment (ADE)?
An app for managing AI agents that write code, rather than for writing code yourself: several agents in parallel, each isolated on its own branch, with a place to see who needs you and to review what they did. Warp coined the term in June 2025.