# CopilotKit review

> CopilotKit is an open-source framework that connects apps to AI agents with chat, generative UI, shared state, and human approvals.

Devtoolwatch Board, the week of Oct 25–31, 2026. Canonical page: https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/copilotkit/

## TL;DR

CopilotKit is an open-source SDK for building agentic applications, generative UI, and chat apps. It is for developers who want one agent backend to serve React, Angular, Vue, React Native, Slack, and Microsoft Teams. The team behind it also makes the AG-UI Protocol, which handles the wire protocol between agents and UIs.

## CopilotKit at a glance

- **Category:** [Agent frameworks](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/categories/agent-frameworks/)
- **Maintained by:** CopilotKit (organization, [@CopilotKit](https://github.com/CopilotKit) on GitHub)
- **License:** MIT
- **Language:** TypeScript, Python, MDX
- **Repository:** [github.com/CopilotKit/CopilotKit](https://github.com/CopilotKit/CopilotKit)
- **Website:** [docs.copilotkit.ai](https://docs.copilotkit.ai)
- **npm package:** [@copilotkit/react-core](https://www.npmjs.com/package/@copilotkit/react-core) 1.80.0
- **Latest release:** [v1.80.0](https://github.com/CopilotKit/CopilotKit/releases/tag/v1.80.0) on GitHub, Oct 24, 2026
- **First published:** Jun 19, 2023

## What CopilotKit does

- CopilotKit provides a customizable chat UI that supports message streaming, tool calls, and agent responses.
- CopilotKit lets agents generate and update UI components at runtime based on user intent and agent state.
- CopilotKit offers a shared state layer that agents and UI components can both read and write in real time.
- CopilotKit supports human-in-the-loop workflows where agents pause to request user input, confirmation, or edits.
- CopilotKit renders UI components returned by backend tools directly in the client.
- CopilotKit's Channels SDK puts an existing agent into Slack and Microsoft Teams with the same tools and shared state.
- CopilotKit's useAgent hook gives programmatic control over the agent connection on top of AG-UI.

### How it works

CopilotKit connects your UI, agents, and tools into one interaction loop. AG-UI handles the wire protocol, and CopilotKit handles the UI layer for each framework and channel. You pick an agent backend such as LangChain, Mastra, CrewAI, PydanticAI, Google ADK, AWS Strands, or the Claude Agent SDK. The agent logic stays the same across web, mobile, and chat platforms.

## How to install CopilotKit

**Onboard with your coding agent**

```
npx --yes copilotkit@latest onboard start
```

**Start a new project**

```
npx copilotkit@latest create
```

**Install agent skills**

```
npx copilotkit@latest skills install
```

### Requirements

- An agent backend, such as the built-in agent or a framework like LangChain, Mastra, or CrewAI.

### First steps

1. Open your coding agent in your project folder, or in an empty folder for a new app.
2. Give the coding agent the README prompt, which runs the onboard command from the project root.
3. For a fresh app, run the create command. It scaffolds a project in its own directory without modifying existing apps.

## Who CopilotKit is for

- React and Next.js developers adding agent chat and generative UI to an existing app.
- Teams that want one agent across web, mobile, Slack, and Microsoft Teams.
- Developers building workflows that need human approval before an agent continues.

### Limitations

- React and Next.js support is GA. Angular, Vue, and React Native are listed as supported, and Vue's quickstart is still coming.
- Discord and WhatsApp work through a Channels SDK adapter. Managed connections are not yet available.
- Google Chat, iMessage, and SMS are on the roadmap, not yet supported.
- Rich threads, user memories, and automatic learning are part of CopilotKit Intelligence, a separate platform with plans.

## Usage data (the week of Oct 25–31, 2026)

- Board rank: #147 overall, #16 in Agent frameworks, momentum score 53
- Downloads that week: 653.6k (+8% vs 4-week average)
- New GitHub stars per week (last 12 weeks): Aug 9: 159; Aug 16: 201; Aug 23: 156; Aug 30: 112; Sep 6: 139; Sep 13: 101; Sep 20: 163; Sep 27: 193; Oct 4: 220; Oct 11: 187; Oct 18: 154; Oct 25: 234

## CopilotKit alternatives

| Rank | Tool | Stars | Downloads/wk |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | [Harness²](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/google-research-harness2/) | 21.7k | – |
| #2 | [HyperFrames](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/heygen-com-hyperframes/) | 76.6k | 1.5M |
| #3 | [AgentScope](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/agentscope-ai-agentscope/) | 35k | 51.4k |
| #4 | [AG-UI](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/ag-ui/) | 16.9k | 4.6M |
| #5 | [LangGraph](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/langgraph/) | 44.2k | 18.5M |
| #6 | [Bifrost](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/maximhq-bifrost/) | 9.3k | – |

## CopilotKit FAQ

### Is CopilotKit free and open source?

Yes. CopilotKit's source code is on GitHub (CopilotKit/CopilotKit) under the MIT license, so you can use it for free.

### How do I install CopilotKit?

Run `npx --yes copilotkit@latest onboard start`. The install section above has the other options from the project's README.

### Is CopilotKit still maintained?

Yes. The CopilotKit/CopilotKit repository was last updated on Oct 25, 2026, and the latest release, v1.80.0 on GitHub, came out on Oct 24, 2026.

### How popular is CopilotKit?

CopilotKit has 38.4k GitHub stars as of Nov 1, 2026. It gained 234 new stars in the week of Oct 25–31, 2026, against a 12-week average of 168 a week. Its main package had about 653.6k downloads that week, +8% against its own 4-week average. That made it #16 among AI agent frameworks on the Devtoolwatch Board.

### CopilotKit vs AG-UI: how do they compare?

CopilotKit and AG-UI are both tracked by Devtoolwatch as AI agent frameworks. CopilotKit has 38.4k GitHub stars and AG-UI has 16.9k. In the week of Oct 25–31, 2026, CopilotKit's main package had 653.6k downloads and AG-UI's had 4.6M. AG-UI is an open, event-based protocol that standardizes how AI agents connect to user-facing frontend applications. [AG-UI review](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/ag-ui/)

### CopilotKit vs Vercel AI SDK: how do they compare?

CopilotKit and Vercel AI SDK are both tracked by Devtoolwatch as AI agent frameworks. CopilotKit has 38.4k GitHub stars and Vercel AI SDK has 27.7k. In the week of Oct 25–31, 2026, CopilotKit's main package had 653.6k downloads and Vercel AI SDK's had 42.6M. Vercel AI SDK is a provider-agnostic TypeScript toolkit for building AI-powered applications and agents with frameworks like Next.js, React, Svelte, and Vue. [Vercel AI SDK review](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/ai-sdk/)

### What are the best alternatives to CopilotKit?

Other AI agent frameworks on the Devtoolwatch Board in the week of Oct 25–31, 2026, by momentum: Harness² (#1), HyperFrames (#2), AgentScope (#3), AG-UI (#4), LangGraph (#5). The alternatives table above has their numbers.

### What is CopilotKit used for?

CopilotKit is used to connect apps to AI agents. Developers use it to add chat, generative UI, shared state, and human-in-the-loop approvals to web apps, mobile apps, and Slack or Microsoft Teams.

### How does CopilotKit work?

CopilotKit connects your UI, agents, and tools into a single interaction loop. The AG-UI Protocol carries messages between agent and frontend, and CopilotKit provides the UI layer for each framework and channel.

### Is CopilotKit open source?

Yes. CopilotKit describes itself as an open-source framework, and the repository's source code is under the MIT License.

### How is CopilotKit related to AG-UI?

CopilotKit is made by the company behind the AG-UI Protocol. AG-UI handles the wire protocol between agents and users, and CopilotKit builds the frontend layer on top of it.

### What is CopilotKit Intelligence?

CopilotKit Intelligence adds rich threads, user memories, product analytics, inspection, and automatic learning to CopilotKit agents. You can use the hosted platform or self-host it in your own Kubernetes cluster or VPC.

## Sources

1. [CopilotKit/CopilotKit on GitHub](https://github.com/CopilotKit/CopilotKit)
2. [CopilotKit README](https://github.com/CopilotKit/CopilotKit/blob/main/README.md)
3. [@copilotkit/react-core on npm](https://www.npmjs.com/package/@copilotkit/react-core)
4. [CopilotKit website](https://docs.copilotkit.ai)
5. [Release v1.80.0 (Oct 24, 2026)](https://github.com/CopilotKit/CopilotKit/releases/tag/v1.80.0)
6. [Release channels/v0.11.1 (Oct 16, 2026)](https://github.com/CopilotKit/CopilotKit/releases/tag/channels/v0.11.1)
7. [Release v1.79.1 (Oct 15, 2026)](https://github.com/CopilotKit/CopilotKit/releases/tag/v1.79.1)
8. [Hacker News: Show HN: CopilotKit- Build in-app AI chatbots and AI-powered textareas](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38545207)
9. [Devtoolwatch Board, the week of Oct 25–31, 2026](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/)