goose

Goose is a general-purpose, open source AI agent built in Rust and originally created by Block, Inc. It runs natively on macOS, Linux, and Windows as a desktop app, a full CLI for terminal workflows, and an API for embedding it in other tools. The project has since moved to the Agentic AI Foundation (AAIF) at the Linux Foundation.

What It Is

Goose is a local-first AI agent designed to go beyond simple code suggestions. It can install software, execute commands, edit files, run tests, conduct research, write content, and automate workflows — all from a single agent interface. Unlike cloud-only AI assistants, goose runs on your machine and connects to your choice of LLM provider, giving you control over both the model and the data.

Architecture and Stack

Goose is built in Rust for performance and portability across platforms. It ships three access modes:

• Desktop app — native GUI for macOS, Linux, and Windows
• CLI — full terminal interface installable via a single curl command
• API — embeddable interface for integrating goose into other applications

The agent connects to 15+ LLM providers including Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, Ollama, OpenRouter, Azure, and AWS Bedrock. It also supports using existing Claude, ChatGPT, or Gemini subscriptions via the Agent Communication Protocol (ACP).

Extension Ecosystem

Goose connects to 70+ extensions through the Model Context Protocol (MCP) open standard. This allows users to extend the agent's capabilities with external tools, data sources, and services without modifying the core agent. The project also supports custom distributions — organizations can build their own goose distro with preconfigured providers, extensions, and branding.

Open Source Lineage and Governance

Originally developed by Block, Inc. (the company behind Square and Cash App), goose was open-sourced under the Apache License 2.0. The repository has accumulated over 45,000 GitHub stars and more than 4,600 forks as of mid-2026. The project has since been donated to the Agentic AI Foundation (AAIF) under the Linux Foundation, giving it a neutral governance structure and long-term stewardship outside of any single company.

Update: v1.34.1

The latest stable release is v1.34.1, published May 15, 2026. The repository remains actively maintained with frequent pushes and an open CI pipeline. The move to AAIF/Linux Foundation represents a significant governance milestone, signaling the project's intent to grow as a community-driven standard for local AI agents rather than a single-vendor product.