Open sourceFree for every Mac, MIT licensed

Start the agents.
Go do something else.

Every Claude Code or Cursor task gets its own git worktree and terminal. Shika tells you when one is ready.

Install Shika View on GitHub
The Shika logo: a deer above a small terminal node graph

This is live. Click inside, then try jk to move, ↵ to open the terminal, g for the shell, n for a new agent.

This is a live prototype. Open it on a laptop to drive it with the keyboard.

Open full screen

The whole workflow is five keys.

Shika is built for the keyboard. Your hands stay put from the first prompt to the push.

  1. n

    Start an agent

    Pick Claude Code or Cursor CLI. Shika creates a worktree and starts the CLI inside it.

  2. ↵

    Write the prompt

    Type straight into the real terminal. The first line names the branch, then the CLI's own title renames it.

  3. Go do something else

    When the agent goes quiet, a notification tells you which task is ready to check.

  4. g

    Check it in the shell

    Flip to your login shell in the same worktree. Diff, test, commit and push yourself.

  5. c

    Close the card

    Shika removes the worktree, and asks first if any work would be lost.

Made for people who don't watch agents work.

See what's done without reading any output.

Each card shows the task, the CLI, the branch and how long it has been in its state. Ready cards add a diff stat of what changed.

A notification when an agent is ready.

Native macOS banners, titled with the project and the task. Click one to land on that card. One per turn, not one per redraw.

One git worktree per agent.

Agents never touch your main checkout or each other. Worktrees live in .worktrees/, kept out of git by the repo's local exclude, not your .gitignore.

~/code/routekit
├─ .worktrees/
│  ├─ fix-flaky-timeout-test
│  ├─ json-route-listing
│  └─ shika-draft-3f2a
└─ src/         untouched

Close asks before anything is lost.

Uncommitted changes or unpushed commits? Shika tells you, then lets you discard or push. It never commits for you.

A native Mac app, written in Rust.

Built on GPUI, the GPU-accelerated UI framework behind Zed. Each agent gets a real terminal that keeps running while hidden, so a busy CLI never stalls.

Rust GPUI alacritty_terminal macOS 13+

Shika doesn't wrap a model API. It runs the CLI you already pay for, in a real terminal, on your Mac.

Claude Code Cursor CLI Codex, Pi and Kiro are next
  • No account
  • No API keys
  • No telemetry
  • Never commits for you
  • Worktrees stay when you quit

Free and open source.

Signed downloads are on the way. Until then, build Shika from source in one script.

  • macOS 13 or later
  • Rust, installed with rustup
  • Full Xcode, not only the Command Line Tools
  • Claude Code or Cursor CLI, installed and signed in
Terminal
$ git clone https://github.com/xuanhieu2611/shika.git
$ cd shika
$ ./scripts/bundle-app.sh
$ open target/release/Shika.app

Move Shika.app to Applications to keep it in the Dock. Watch the repo to hear when signed builds ship.

Questions

Something else? Open an issue.

Is Shika really free?

Yes. It is MIT licensed, with no account and no paid tier. You pay your agent's provider the way you already do.

Which coding agents does it run?

Claude Code and Cursor CLI today. Codex, Pi and Kiro are next. Shika starts the binary you already have, so your login, settings and plan come with it.

Does Shika send my code or prompts anywhere?

No. Shika runs on your Mac and makes no network requests of its own. The CLI you run talks to its provider exactly as it does in any other terminal.

Why a git worktree for every task?

So agents can edit the same repo at the same time without colliding, and your main checkout stays clean. Each worktree is a full checkout on its own branch, under .worktrees/ in your repo.

Will it push or commit for me?

It never commits. You commit and push in the shell, with g. When you close a card with a clean tree and unpushed commits, Shika offers to push them.

What happens when I quit?

Your projects and worktrees stay on disk. Running sessions end, and the next launch lists leftover worktrees so you can clean them up when you choose.

Windows or Linux?

Not yet. Shika is a native Mac app for now.

Why the name?

After Shikamaru, the one who keeps track of everyone on the field while giving directions. Shika also means deer in Japanese, hence the logo.

Keep track of everyone on the field.

Free, open source, and native to your Mac.

Install Shika View on GitHub