head to head · open source
AnythingLLM vs Kai
AnythingLLM has 66,155 GitHub stars, 7,348 forks, 311 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Kai has 1,253 stars, 182 forks, 127 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. AnythingLLM leads on adoption by 5,180% (66,155 vs 1,253 stars). AnythingLLM is written in JavaScript under MIT; Kai is written in Kotlin under Apache-2.0. AnythingLLM has attracted 11% as many forks as stars, Kai 15%. AnythingLLM was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| AnythingLLM | Kai | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 66K | ★ 1.3K |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | JavaScript | Kotlin |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-16 |
| Forks | ⑂ 7.3K | ⑂ 182 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick AnythingLLM if
- You weight community size — 66K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Kai if
- You want the Kai feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Kotlin
- You evaluated both and Kai fits your workflow better
About AnythingLLM
AnythingLLM is a local first AI application that enables users to chat with their documents using any large language model (LLM), local or cloud hosted. It runs as a self hosted service—by default in Docker—and provides a complete interface for document ingestion, agent orchestration, multi user access, and workflow automation without requiring external cloud dependencies. The project lives in the local AI and AI interaction ecosystem, targeting users who want full control over their data and model selection.
read the full AnythingLLM overview →
About Kai
Kai 9000 An open source AI assistant with persistent memory that runs on Android, iOS, Windows, Mac, Linux, and Web . Website Documentation Sponsor: Atlas Cloud Installation Homebrew (macOS): AUR (Arch Linux): Winget (Windows): Direct Downloads AI That Builds Screens, Not Just Text Kai 9000's Interactive UI lets the AI generate full interactive screens — quizzes, dashboards, recipes, brainstorms, and more. Navigate by tapping buttons instead of scrolling through chat. Features Persistent memory — Kai remembers important details across conversations and uses them automatically Customizable soul — Define the AI's p…
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Frequently asked questions
Is AnythingLLM or Kai more popular?
AnythingLLM has 66,155 GitHub stars and Kai has 1,253. AnythingLLM has the larger community by that measure.
Are AnythingLLM and Kai free?
Both are open source. AnythingLLM is licensed under MIT and Kai under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between AnythingLLM and Kai?
AnythingLLM is written in JavaScript and Kai in Kotlin. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, AnythingLLM or Kai?
Choose AnythingLLM if you want the larger community (66,155 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose Kai if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.