BuildGist

BuildGist vs MyBuildy, SpecStory and Backplanes

BuildGist is a Mac app for people who code with Claude Code, Cursor or Codex. After each meaningful run, it explains in plain English what the agent changed and what to check. When you switch agents, it hands the task to the new chat, so you don't explain it again.

MyBuildy, SpecStory and Backplanes also help you keep up with what coding agents do, each in a different way. What this page says about them comes from their own sites, read on October 19, 2026, and each section links to the pages it used. Products change, so check their sites before you choose.

The short version

BuildGist vs MyBuildy

MyBuildy sits beside the coding agent's window you choose, reads screenshots of that one window, and says it never opens your files. It explains in plain English what happened, writes what to type next and pastes it when you click, checks whether the work actually worked, and remembers the project between sessions. It runs with your own Anthropic, OpenAI or OpenRouter key, or with a local model through Ollama or LM Studio. It is free and source-available, for Windows 10 and 11 and macOS 14 or later, tested with Claude Code, with other agents marked experimental.

Where MyBuildy is better: it is free, it can run on a local model so that, as it says, everything stays on your computer, it runs on Windows, and it writes the next prompt. It is built for people who don't read code.

Where BuildGist fits better: you use Claude Code, Cursor and Codex, want each meaningful run explained from the changes it made, including uncommitted work, and want to switch agents mid-task with Continue.

BuildGist vs SpecStory

SpecStory saves the conversations from your coding agent sessions as local Markdown files kept with your project, through extensions for Cursor and VS Code with Copilot, and a CLI for other agents. SpecStory Cloud is optional and lets you search and share them. It lists ten supported agents, including Cursor, Copilot, Claude Code, Codex and Antigravity. Its homepage says the extensions, CLI and cloud are free.

Where SpecStory is better: it keeps the full conversation, which BuildGist does not (the transcript stays in each agent). It supports more agents, installs on more than a Mac, and is free.

Where BuildGist fits better: you want to read what a run changed and what to check, without reading the whole conversation, and want the next agent to start with the task.

BuildGist vs Backplanes

Backplanes session reports are written when a Claude Code, Codex or Cursor session ends: a verdict, findings such as exposed credentials, where the time went, and the story of the session. It reads sessions only after they end, installs with one command on macOS, Linux and WSL 2, and says it scrubs personal data and credentials before anything leaves your machine. Its pricing page says session reports and the organization-wide report are free, and a paid subscription adds controls that monitor, warn or block where agents run.

Where Backplanes is better: security findings, reports a whole team or organization can see, policy enforcement, Linux and WSL 2, and free reports.

Where BuildGist fits better: you work alone on a Mac and want a plain-English read of what each run changed, plus Continue when you switch agents.

How we picked these three

Each day from October 17 to 19, 2026, we asked one AI web-search tool the same 22 questions developers ask about coding agents, such as how to see what Claude Code changed, how to switch from Claude Code to Codex, and what to do at a usage limit. We recorded which sites each answer cited: 66 answers in all, one per question per day. buildgist.com was cited in 30 of the 66 (3 of those came from the one question that names BuildGist, BuildGist vs Conductor), and github.com pages in at least 42. Of the other products, SpecStory was cited in 5 answers, MyBuildy in 3, Conductor in 3 and Backplanes in 1. It is a small sample from one tool, so treat it as a rough picture.

Conductor runs several agents at once in separate workspaces, and has its own page: BuildGist vs Conductor.

Try BuildGist

Pricing has the plan, the FAQ has questions people asked, and Getting started has the setup. Apple silicon, macOS 12 or later. United States, 18 or older.