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Surfaces

Author
Tom Rochette
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Created: / Updated: / Status: in progress / Readability: 3 / 4 minutes read (~635 words)
agents 48 surfaces 24
Table of Contents

The editors and IDEs where agents meet your code, from AI-native platforms and agentic IDEs to the neutral defaults, with the acquisitions and sunsets recorded where they happened.

  • bb - the MIT agent IDE that builds itself, where threads in worktrees are driven from a desktop app, web app, CLI, and HTTP API by the provider CLIs you already run.
  • Cate - the MIT infinite-canvas desktop workspace where agent terminals become colored worktree territories reporting working, waiting, or finished.
  • cc-haha - the MIT Claude Code desktop workbench packing sessions, worktrees, diff review, MCP and subagent management, a skills marketplace, and IM remote access into one app.
  • Codeg - the Apache-2.0 workspace that aggregates every agent’s sessions into one searchable, transferable layer, with a self-hosted server option and native iOS and Android clients.
  • CodeNomad - the MIT desktop-and-browser cockpit for OpenCode V2, with worktree sessions, SideCars, voice input, and phone remote control through an OpenTunnel relay.
  • Continue - the open-source Copilot alternative across VS Code, JetBrains, and CLI, acquired by Cursor in June 2026, now read-only.
  • Cursor - Anysphere’s AI-native editor platform, acquired by SpaceX in August 2026, with OpenAI winding down its model access from November 12.
  • Delta - Zed Industries’ multiplayer agent environment on DeltaDB, thread plus worktree plus in-thread review, in public beta with PRs replaced.
  • Google Antigravity - Google’s free multi-agent platform (2.0, IDE, CLI, SDK), generous tier, incident-heavy first year.
  • JetBrains IDEs - the analysis-heavy IDEs whose AI layer, AI Assistant plus Junie, is removable and provider-agnostic.
  • Kiro - AWS’s spec-driven agentic IDE, credits-metered, from a 50-credit free tier to $200/month.
  • Nimbalyst - the MIT visual workspace where you and Claude Code or Codex edit the same markdown, diagrams, and code, every agent change a per-block diff.
  • OpenChamber - the MIT open-source session cockpit around OpenCode, worktrees and multi-model fusion included.
  • px0 - the MIT browser IDE for reviewing AI-generated code, one static Go binary over PR diffs and instant search, handing fixes to your own harnesses.
  • Roo Code - the Cline-fork VS Code extension that sunset itself in May 2026 to chase cloud agents.
  • Trae - ByteDance’s AI IDE, repriced in September 2026 to a $20/$60/$200 ladder, SOLO mode and cloud tasks included, telemetry questions attached.
  • Vibeyard - the MIT desktop IDE wrapping Claude Code, Codex CLI, and Gemini CLI, whose kanban cards spawn and close sessions and whose inspector tracks cost and context live.
  • Visual Studio 2026 - Microsoft’s Windows IDE gone AI-native, Copilot agent mode with MCP, cloud agents, and a BYOK preview, Community free to $250/month Enterprise.
  • Void - the Apache-2.0 open-source Cursor alternative, demand proven, repository now archived with the last release in April 2025.
  • VS Code + Copilot - the neutral default, hosting Copilot, Claude Code, and Codex as swappable harnesses.
  • Whiteboard - the MIT desktop canvas where coding agents draw their work as diagrams, traces, and diffs for humans to review, YC W26, local-only beta.
  • Windsurf - the agentic IDE rescued by Cognition in 2025, fully absorbed into Devin Desktop, down to a redirect and Devin-hosted docs.
  • Zed - the Rust performance editor where AI is optional and BYOK is unlimited.

Its members are compared on shared rows in the Surface Feature Matrix.

Changes
#

  • 2026-08-23 - Added Cursor.
  • 2026-08-23 - Added JetBrains IDEs.
  • 2026-08-23 - Added VS Code + Copilot.
  • 2026-08-23 - Added Windsurf.
  • 2026-08-23 - Added Zed.
  • 2026-08-24 - Added Antigravity.
  • 2026-08-24 - Added Kiro.
  • 2026-08-24 - Added OpenChamber.
  • 2026-08-24 - Added Trae.
  • 2026-08-24 - Added Void.
  • 2026-08-26 - Added Continue.
  • 2026-08-26 - Added Roo Code.
  • 2026-10-04 - Added Delta.
  • 2026-10-04 - Added Whiteboard.
  • 2026-10-06 - Added Visual Studio 2026.
  • 2026-10-08 - Added Cate.
  • 2026-10-10 - Added Vibeyard.
  • 2026-10-11 - Added bb.
  • 2026-10-11 - Added cc-haha.
  • 2026-10-11 - Added Codeg.
  • 2026-10-11 - Added Nimbalyst.
  • 2026-10-11 - Added CodeNomad.
  • 2026-10-11 - Added px0.