Kanban CLI (A local-first, agent-first task manager for the terminal)
Hello HN, Ever since agents have become increasingly common in development, I've been scratching my head as to how to control their randomness. Recently, I decided to emulate an issue-tracking and project-management tool for agent-driven workflows. Kanban is a Rust-based coordination layer designed to provide a feature-rich terminal interface and enforce rigorous workflows. It aims to be versatile and extendable, made to be tailored to any preferred flow. It comes with full git integration and guardrails such that only what truly benefits a project can go through. The workflow boils down to…
Kanban CLI (A local-first, agent-first task manager for the terminal) launched on May 24, 2026 with 17 votes, #950 of 20,538 launches that month and more than 90% of that year's launches.
In plain words
Kanban CLI is a terminal-based task manager built in Rust for managing AI agent workflows. It provides a kanban board interface with git integration, allowing users to define and control project tasks with strict validation schemas and isolated git branches. The tool is designed to be customizable for different workflows and works locally on users' machines, offering guardrails to ensure only beneficial changes proceed through the development pipeline.
written from the facts on this page · September 2026
From the sources
kanban - A local-first, agent-first CLI for software development workflows.
A local-first, agent-first CLI for software development workflows. Kanban CLI is a terminal-based project management tool that brings agile workflows directly to your local file system. Designed with AI agents in mind, it provides structured task tracking, sprint management, and role-based assignments using a git-integrated, JSON-backedfrom codeberg.org
In the maker’s words, at launch
Hello HN, Ever since agents have become increasingly common in development, I've been scratching my head as to how to control their randomness. Recently, I decided to emulate an issue-tracking and project-management tool for agent-driven workflows. Kanban is a Rust-based coordination layer designed to provide a…
Does a similar job
all alternatives →
VS Code Agent Kanban: Task Management for the AI-Assisted DeveloperMar 2026 · appsoftware.com · ▲99Agent Kanban has 4 main features: GitOps & team friendly kanban board integration inside VS Code Structured plan / todo / implement via @kanban commands Leverages your existing agent harness rather than trying to bundle a built in one .md task format provides a permanent (editable) source of truth including considerations, decisions and actions, that is resistant to context rot
Kanban-md – File-based CLI Kanban built for local agents collaborationFeb 2026 · github.com · ▲19I built kanban-md because I wanted a simple local task tracker that works well for the agent loop: drop tasks in, run multiple agents in parallel, avoid collisions, and observe progress easily. Tasks are just Markdown files (with YAML frontmatter) in a `kanban/` next to your code — no server, no DB, no API tokens. Simple, transparent, future-proof. What makes it useful for multi-agent workflows: - *Atomic `pick --claim`* so two agents don’t grab the same task. - *Token-efficient `--compact` output* (one-line-per-task) for cheap polling in agent loops. - *Skills included* -- just run…
Kanbanq : Open alpha2025 · kanbanq.app · ▲265TL;DR: We built Kanbanq, a minimal task management app for indies and small teams. It keeps Trello’s simplicity but adds proper backlogs, sprints, real-time collaboration and public board sharing. Free while in alpha, feedback welcome --- I’ve been working on Kanbanq with a friend. It’s a minimal task management app we built after getting frustrated with Trello. It was great for simple boards, but it falls apart when you need backlogs (that are more than just a giant list) or want to work in sprints. Kanbanq keeps the same clean feel but adds backlog management (our unique feature), sprints,…
Vibe Kanban – Kanban board to manage your AI coding agents2025 · github.com · ▲195Hey HN! I'm Louis, one of the creators of Vibe Kanban. We started working on this a few weeks ago. Personally, I was feeling pretty useless working synchronously with coding agents. The 2-5 minutes that they take to complete their work often led me to distraction and doomscrolling. But there's plenty of productive work that we (human engineers) could be doing in that time, especially if we run coding agents in the background and parallelise them. Vibe Kanban lets you effortlessly spin up multiple coding agents. While some agents handle tasks in the background, you can focus on planning…
Kan.bn – An open-source alterative to Trello2025 · github.com · ▲509The open source Trello alternative. Contribute to kanbn/kan development by creating an account on GitHub.
Kanban-CLI – a web UI for local Markdown todo listsMay 2026 · github.com · ▲15As we all are, I've been experimenting with ways to reduce external saas spend, and continually bring traditionally external pieces of context (prs, docs, trello boards) into the one mono repo. I have toyed with a markdown todo list and setting claude/codex into a "ralph" loop previously, but always missed the web ui for organising, planning, and tracking things in progress. So codex and I build kanban-cli, an installable or npx-runnable cli util that takes one or more markdown files, and uses markdown headers and todo syntax to track and manage agentic tasks. Let me know your thoughts,…
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