Local-first kernel for coding agents

Make every change carry its proof.

Cortex sits between coding agents and their tools. It preserves the case, bounds the change, and binds verification to the exact repository state—so “done” never outruns evidence.

Run your first case See the reasoning loop

Connecting an MCP agent? Read the MCP guide

The Cortex reasoning loop connecting orientation, evidence, planning, change, verification, and memory — One durable case carries the work from orientation through verified, remembered proof.

Local state: Human-readable case files
Bounded writer: Lease plus declared scope
Revision-bound proof: Receipts bound to HEAD + diff
Honest outcomes: Verified · partial · failed · unverified

Why a kernel

Coding is not the hard part. Keeping the reasoning intact is.

A capable model can write the function. The fragile part is preserving why one theory won, what would disprove it, who may edit which files, and whether the visible behavior actually passed.

Search hits quietly become confident causes.

Two agents drift into the same change.

A green build substitutes for browser proof.

Context loss erases why the decision was made.

Cortex makes each failure mode visible in durable state and stops the workflow when required structure is missing. The model remains the planner and author; the kernel keeps the work honest, recoverable, and inspectable.

The reasoning loop

One case. Six guarded moves.

Each guarded move operates on explicit state and leaves a durable artifact. Skipped disproof paths, undeclared boundaries, competing writers, and stale receipts become data—not forgotten instructions.

Understand the kernel

01
Openworkspace identity + baseline
02
Investigatecandidates with provenance
03
Planhypothesis + disproof + boundary
04
Begin changebounded actor lease
05
Verifyexact contract + bound receipt
06
Rememberhonest outcome + reusable memory

What Cortex enforces

Common agent failure modes become enforceable rules.

These are state-machine gates and evidence policies, not suggestions in a prompt. Missing structure blocks progress; uncertain evidence stays visibly uncertain.

Failure modeKernel ruleDurable artifact

Failure modeSearch output is mistaken for proofKernel ruleCandidate until structurally supportedDurable artifactevidence record

Failure modeA theory cannot be challengedKernel ruleDisproof path requiredDurable artifactplan + hypotheses

Failure modeTwo agents write concurrentlyKernel ruleBounded lease plus revision CASDurable artifactlease + revision

Failure modeTests ran against stale workKernel ruleHEAD and diff-bound verificationDurable artifactverification receipt

Failure modeA non-green result disappearsKernel ruleExplicit completion outcomeDurable artifactcanonical assessment

No unverified “done”

See exactly why a task is—or is not—done.

Missing proof stays visible instead of being rounded up to success. CLI, MCP, Studio, handoffs, and completion all read the same assessment.

verified
partial
failed
unverified

Explore the case file

One kernel, three surfaces

No forked truth between agents and people.

Every surface works from the same case file, revision, decisions, evidence, and canonical verification assessment.

Same case · same revisionone canonical assessment

Agents

MCP

A compact lifecycle with structured next actions and bounded context.

cortex_open_task02

Scripts + developers

JSON CLI

Human commands and stable machine output over the same kernel.

cortex status --json03

Human operators

Studio

A live, read-only board of sessions across repositories.

cortex studio

Start locally

One binary. Your specialist tools stay optional.

Install Cortex once, then open a case in any Git repository or expose the compact MCP profile to your agent. Missing specialist tools degrade honestly—Cortex never fabricates their output.

Pure Go · Git required · local-first state · MIT licensed

01 Install Cortex

$ go install github.com/abdul-hamid-achik/cortex/cmd/cortex@latest
$ cortex open "Fix checkout redirect" --actor agent-auth

02 Connect an MCP agent

$ mcphub add cortex cortex serve
$ mcphub sync --write

Ready when your agent is

Put the next agent change on the record.

Open a durable case, follow the six guarded moves, and preserve the evidence behind the outcome.

Run your first case Follow the full tutorial