Key takeaways
- Open-source clone of Ramp's internal 'Inspect' background coding tool
- Uses Modal for cloud sandboxes and OpenCode as the coding agent runtime
- Single-tenant only — designed for internal team use, not multi-tenant SaaS
- 537 GitHub stars in first 2 weeks; early but active development
FAQ
What is Background Agents?
An open-source system that runs AI coding agents in the background using Modal sandboxes and Cloudflare Workers.
Who created Background Agents?
Cole Murray, an AI/ML consultant and former Amazon Sr SDE, based in San Diego.
How does Background Agents compare to Devin?
Background Agents is open-source and self-hosted; Devin is a commercial hosted service with more polish but less transparency.
What coding agent does Background Agents use?
OpenCode (opencode.ai), an open-source terminal-based AI coding agent.
Executive Summary
Background Agents (also called "Open-Inspect") is an open-source implementation of a background coding agent system, directly inspired by Ramp's internal Inspect tool. The system enables AI agents to work on coding tasks asynchronously while developers focus on other work. Built with Modal sandboxes and Cloudflare Workers, it's designed for internal team use with single-tenant deployment.
| Attribute | Value |
|---|---|
| Company | Open source (Cole Murray) [1] |
| Founded | 2026 |
| Funding | None (open source) |
| Employees | Individual creator |
| Headquarters | San Diego, CA |
Product Overview
Background Agents launched in late January 2026 and has quickly gained traction with 537 GitHub stars in its first two weeks.[2] The project is directly inspired by Ramp's internal Inspect tool.[3]
The system enables AI agents to work on coding tasks asynchronously while developers focus on other work. Unlike real-time pair programming tools, background agents process tasks independently and deliver completed PRs.
Key Capabilities
| Capability | Description |
|---|---|
| Async Execution | Agents work independently while developers do other work |
| Fast Startup | Near-instant sessions using Modal snapshots |
| Multiplayer | Multiple users collaborate in same session |
| Commit Attribution | Every commit attributed to prompt author |
| Repo Setup | Custom .openinspect/setup.sh for environment config |
Product Surfaces / Editions
| Surface | Description | Availability |
|---|---|---|
| Web UI | Browser-based interface | GA |
| Slack | Trigger from Slack | GA |
| Chrome Extension | Browser integration | GA |
Technical Architecture
Background Agents separates concerns across two planes:
Control Plane (Cloudflare):
- Workers handle API requests
- Durable Objects maintain per-session state
- D1 Database stores repo-scoped secrets
Data Plane (Modal):
- Modal provides cloud sandbox infrastructure[4]
- Each session gets isolated container
- OpenCode runs as the coding agent[5]
Key Technical Details
| Aspect | Detail |
|---|---|
| Deployment | Self-hosted (Cloudflare + Modal) |
| Model(s) | Via OpenCode (configurable) |
| Integrations | GitHub, Slack |
| Open Source | Yes (MIT license) |
Strengths
- Fully open-source — MIT licensed, inspect and modify everything
- Modern architecture — Cloudflare edge + Modal sandboxes is solid foundation
- Fast iteration — Modal snapshots enable near-instant session starts
- Multiplayer support — Collaboration features rarely seen in OSS agent tools
- Active development — Rapid commits, responsive maintainer
- Commit attribution — Proper authorship tracking via GitHub OAuth
Cautions
- Single-tenant only — Not suitable for multi-org or commercial deployment
- Infrastructure dependencies — Requires Modal (vendor lock-in for compute)
- OpenCode coupling — Locked to one agent runtime, not model-agnostic
- No enterprise features — Missing Jira, signed commits, audit logs, BYOK
- Early stage — 2 weeks old, expect rough edges and breaking changes
- Self-hosting complexity — Requires Modal and Cloudflare account management
Pricing & Licensing
| Tier | Price | Includes |
|---|---|---|
| Open Source | Free | Full functionality (MIT license) |
Licensing model: Open source (MIT)
Hidden costs: Modal compute (~$0.50-2/hour), Cloudflare (free tier may suffice). Expect $50-200/month for active team.
Competitive Positioning
Direct Competitors
| Competitor | Differentiation |
|---|---|
| Devin | Devin is commercial hosted; Background Agents is self-hosted OSS |
| Tembo | Tembo has multi-tenancy and enterprise features; Background Agents is single-tenant |
| Codex App | Codex is first-party OpenAI; Background Agents uses OpenCode |
| Emdash | Emdash is local-first; Background Agents is cloud sandboxes |
When to Choose Background Agents Over Alternatives
- Choose Background Agents when: You want open-source, self-hosted background agents for internal team
- Choose Devin when: You need commercial support and hosted service
- Choose Tembo when: You need multi-tenancy and enterprise features
- Choose Emdash when: You prefer local-first without cloud dependencies
Ideal Customer Profile
Best fit:
- Engineering teams wanting to self-host background coding agents
- Developers studying modern agent architecture patterns
- Startups willing to operate their own infrastructure
- Teams with DevOps capacity to manage Modal/Cloudflare
Poor fit:
- Multi-tenant SaaS requirements
- Enterprise customers needing compliance features
- Teams without DevOps capacity for infrastructure
- Organizations requiring signed commits or BYOK
Viability Assessment
| Factor | Assessment |
|---|---|
| Financial Health | N/A — individual open source project |
| Market Position | Niche — best OSS background agent implementation |
| Innovation Pace | Rapid — active development |
| Community/Ecosystem | Growing — 537 stars in 2 weeks |
| Long-term Outlook | Uncertain — depends on maintainer commitment |
Cole Murray's track record (claude-code-otel, Amazon background) is solid, but single-maintainer OSS projects have inherent sustainability risks.
Bottom Line
Background Agents is a well-architected open-source implementation of Ramp's Inspect concept. The Cloudflare + Modal architecture is production-worthy, and the multiplayer features show thoughtful design.
However, the single-tenant security model and OpenCode coupling limit applicability beyond internal team use.
Recommended for: Teams wanting to self-host background coding agents, developers studying agent architecture, and startups comfortable managing infrastructure.
Not recommended for: Multi-tenant deployments, enterprise compliance requirements, or teams without DevOps capacity.
Outlook: Valuable as reference implementation and for internal team use. Commercial/enterprise deployment requires additional work on multi-tenancy and security.
Research by Ry Walker Research • methodology