Kyde

Kyde is a fast, native Git client and code editor built primarily for macOS, created by Kyle Johnson (kyle-ssg). It focuses on the commit and diff workflow — the parts of a modern IDE that developers use most — without the overhead of a full IDE or Electron-based app. The project is open source under the Apache License 2.0 and is written in Rust.

What It Is

Kyde is a desktop application that combines a Git client with a lightweight code editor, targeting developers who spend most of their time in the commit and diff view rather than a full IDE. It is built on gpui — the same GPU-rendered native GUI framework used by the Zed editor — which means no web layer, no Electron, and no JVM startup time. The README describes it as "a fast native commit and diff code editor — a Git client for macOS."

Architecture and Stack

Kyde's technical foundation is deliberately minimal and performance-oriented:

• gpui (Apache-2.0) — Zed's native, GPU-rendered GUI framework for all UI rendering
• git — shelled out directly; no libgit2 dependency
• similar (Apache-2.0) — handles line and word diffing
• tree-sitter — powers syntax highlighting, installed on demand via a built-in Language Plugins manager
• alacritty's VTE engine — backs the embedded multi-tab PTY terminal

Each language grammar is a Cargo feature, so builds can include only the grammars needed, reducing binary size and resident RAM.

Core Features

The README documents a substantial feature set across four main areas:

Git workflow:

• Side-by-side diff with word-level highlighting and a center gutter for staging/reverting hunks
• Commit view with editable diff, message box, and per-hunk or whole-file staging
• Branch switcher with searchable tree and Recent/Local roots
• Commit history log with read-only diff against parent, latest, or local working tree
• Rollback window with checkbox tree and optional deletion of added files
• Push support when ahead of upstream

Code browsing and editing:

• Folder tree with git-status colors and file-type icons
• Text editor with undo/redo, find & replace, syntax highlighting, code folding, and auto-save
• Markdown live preview pane
• Image preview for PNG/JPG/GIF/WebP
• Language Plugins manager supporting TypeScript/TSX, JavaScript, Rust, JSON, Markdown, Shell, CSS, SCSS, YAML, TOML, Python, HTML, Go, R, and LaTeX

Search and navigation:

• Go to File (⌘⇧O / ⌘P) and Find Action (⌘⇧A) fuzzy finders
• Find in Files (⌘⇧F) via git grep with jump-to-match
• Scratch files for throwaway buffers

Terminal:

• Embedded multi-tab PTY terminal docked at the bottom, toggled with `⌃``
• Full color, scrollback, resize, mouse select/copy, bracketed paste, and URL click support

Performance Design

The README states that a 37,000-line package-lock.json scrolls at approximately 120fps. This is achieved through viewport virtualization (only on-screen rows are shaped per frame) and async highlighting (large files open instantly as plain text, then highlight off-thread). Performance is guarded by perf_* time-budget tests and headless-gpui smoke tests that render every screen and fail on any panic. An on-screen FPS monitor is available as a toggle.

Update: v1.3.0

The latest release is kyde-v1.3.0, published on 2026-06-24. The repository was created on 2026-06-22, making this a very recently launched project with rapid early iteration. Prebuilt releases are macOS-only (Apple Silicon and Intel x86_64 zips); Linux and Windows packaging scripts exist in the repository but are not wired to the release pipeline. The README notes that re-enabling cross-platform builds is a "good first issue" for contributors on those platforms.

Known Limitations and Roadmap

The README is candid about current gaps:

• No soft-wrap or caret-follow scrolling yet; the editor uses a flat String buffer rather than a rope
• File watching refreshes on focus only; live updates via notify are planned
• No LSP or AI integration is mentioned