head to head · open source
shannon vs pentest-ai
shannon has 50,964 GitHub stars, 5,926 forks, 18 open issues and last shipped 7 days ago. pentest-ai has 1,793 stars, 328 forks, 2 open issues and last shipped yesterday. shannon leads on adoption by 2,742% (50,964 vs 1,793 stars). shannon is written in TypeScript under AGPL-3.0; pentest-ai is written in Python under MIT. shannon has attracted 12% as many forks as stars, pentest-ai 18%. pentest-ai was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 6 topic tags (ai-penetration-testing, ai-security, appsec, cybersecurity), 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
| shannon | pentest-ai | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 51K | ★ 1.8K |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Written in | TypeScript | Python |
| Last push | 2026-10-27 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 5.9K | ⑂ 328 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick shannon if
- You weight community size — 51K stars and counting
- You want the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick pentest-ai if
- You want the pentest-ai feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and pentest-ai fits your workflow better
About shannon
[!NOTE] Shannon 3.0 is live: deeper security code analysis, more thoroughly vetted findings, a rebuilt CLI, native CI/CD, professional PDF reports, and SARIF. Shannon is an autonomous, AI pentester for web applications and APIs. It analyzes your source code, identifies attack paths, and executes real exploits to prove vulnerabilities before they reach production. No exploit, no report. This repository is Shannon Open Source: the full agent, run locally from your command line. Launch Shannon The interactive launcher will guide you through setup and your first pentest. [!TIP] AI agents and LLMs: start with…
read the full shannon overview →
About pentest-ai
Website · Quick start · Verification · Documentation · Issues Pentest AI connects an AI client or model to a penetration testing workflow. It investigates applications, records findings, and uses machine oracles to check whether an exploit can be reproduced . Verified findings carry evidence you can replay. Use it through MCP , from the CLI , or in CI . The model helps drive the investigation; an oracle determines whether a finding earns a verified verdict. Test only systems you own or have explicit authorization to assess. Read the acceptable use policy and terms before running an engagement. Quick start…
read the full pentest-ai overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is shannon or pentest-ai more popular?
shannon has 50,964 GitHub stars and pentest-ai has 1,793. shannon has the larger community by that measure.
Are shannon and pentest-ai free?
Both are open source. shannon is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and pentest-ai under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between shannon and pentest-ai?
shannon is written in TypeScript and pentest-ai in Python. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, shannon or pentest-ai?
Choose shannon if you want the larger community (50,964 stars) or its AGPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose pentest-ai if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.