head to head · open source
Hermes Agent vs wisp-science
Hermes Agent has 246,618 GitHub stars, 51,659 forks, 41,784 open issues and last shipped today. wisp-science has 1,150 stars, 118 forks, 10 open issues and last shipped today. Hermes Agent leads on adoption by 21,345% (246,618 vs 1,150 stars). Hermes Agent is written in Python under MIT; wisp-science is written in Rust under AGPL-3.0. Hermes Agent has attracted 21% as many forks as stars, wisp-science 10%. Hermes Agent was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (ai-agent, llm), so they are genuine substitutes rather than adjacent tools.
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
| Hermes Agent | wisp-science | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 247K | ★ 1.1K |
| License | MIT | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Python | Rust |
| Last push | 2026-09-18 | 2026-09-18 |
| Forks | ⑂ 52K | ⑂ 118 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Hermes Agent if
- You weight community size — 247K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick wisp-science if
- You want the wisp-science feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Rust
- You evaluated both and wisp-science fits your workflow better
About Hermes Agent
Hermes Agent is a desktop AI agent developed by Nous Research that maintains persistent memory and self improving capabilities across sessions and platforms. It operates as a local first, cross platform interface for LLMs, integrating with multiple model providers and deployment environments without vendor lock in. The agent implements a closed learning loop where it curates its own memory, creates and refines skills from experience, and supports cross session recall via full text search and summarization.
read the full Hermes Agent overview →
About wisp-science
Wisp Science The open source, local first AI research workbench. WISP — Workspace for Intelligent Scientific Practice English · 简体中文 · Website · Releases Search the literature, run Python and R, query 80 scientific databases, and keep the trail — figures, runs, decisions, and drafts — in one project. Your data, conversations, and credentials stay on your machines. Bring your own model. Keep your science. What you can do An agent that does the work Bring OpenAI compatible or Anthropic models, or drive Codex / Claude Code over ACP. The agent reads and writes project files, runs shell, and loads reusable Skills ( SK…
read the full wisp-science overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Hermes Agent or wisp-science more popular?
Hermes Agent has 246,618 GitHub stars and wisp-science has 1,150. Hermes Agent has the larger community by that measure.
Are Hermes Agent and wisp-science free?
Both are open source. Hermes Agent is licensed under MIT and wisp-science under AGPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Hermes Agent and wisp-science?
Hermes Agent is written in Python and wisp-science in Rust. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Hermes Agent or wisp-science?
Choose Hermes Agent if you want the larger community (246,618 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose wisp-science if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.