Grit: Rewriting Git in Rust with Agents
blog.gitbutler.com
June 9, 2026
18 min read
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49/100
Summary
Grit is a project aimed at rewriting Git in Rust, focusing on creating a library-based architecture. The initiative draws inspiration from Anthropic's experiment with agents generating a functioning C compiler.
Key Takeaways
- Grit is a new implementation of Git, rewritten from scratch in Rust, designed as a library that passes over 99% of the Git test suite.
- The project utilizes a swarm of agents to develop the software, inspired by Anthropic's approach to creating a C compiler.
- Grit is not yet fully tested for real-world use and may produce incorrect results, but it aims to address limitations of the original C implementation of Git.
- The goal of Grit is to create a modular, reentrant, and linkable core library that can interact with Git repositories more effectively than the traditional Git architecture.
Community Sentiment
Positives
- The decision to use MIT licensing instead of GPL could encourage broader community contributions, which is essential for the project's growth and sustainability.
- The architectural changes aimed at making the implementation memory safe demonstrate a commitment to improving software reliability, which is crucial for user trust.
Concerns
- Concerns about the project's long-term viability are evident, with speculation that it could fall into maintenance mode if adoption is low.
- The existence of other Git-in-Rust projects like Gitoxide raises doubts about Grit's uniqueness and potential for success in a competitive landscape.
