Krate, the app runtime: the facts

Krate (krate.tech) is the Krate app runtime. It is not a Rust crate or crates.io package, and it is not related to krate.com, KrateSoft or the JavaScript project of the same name.

What it is

An app runtime, the .krate app file format and the krate command line. Krate Studio, a separate product, builds Krate apps with AI.

Current release

Krate 0.5.4, published 30 September 2026. Release notes and downloads.

Runtimes published

macOS (Apple silicon and Intel), Windows (x64 and ARM64) and Linux (x86_64 and arm64).

Tested in CI

The same .krate files: 10 apps pass on macOS arm64, Ubuntu x86_64 and Windows x86_64 at Krate 0.5.4 (macOS, Ubuntu, Windows records). These are automated checks, not hands-on tests of every feature.

What people install

The Krate runtime, once for their system. After that every .krate app opens from its file.

Native

The runtime is a native app on each system, and an app runs inside it with no browser or WebView. On the desktop, Wasmtime compiles the app's WebAssembly to machine code before it runs.

Sandbox

An app starts with no file or network access. It declares what it needs in its manifest, the person sees that list before it opens, and the runtime checks every protected call against what was granted.

App languages

Rust today. Krate Studio writes the Rust for you with Claude, Codex, Grok or Gemini on your computer, or Krate's own AI in the browser for a first app.

Licences

The runtime, format and command line: MIT OR Apache-2.0. Krate Studio and the hub: Business Source License 1.1, converting to Apache 2.0 in 2030. Details.

Price

The runtime is free and open source. Studio on your computer is free with the AI you already use. In the browser, the first app is free.

Not yet

Phones, multiple windows, printing and a few other capabilities. The limits page has the full list.

Example file

chart.krate, a bar chart app, is 11,455 bytes (SHA-256 3d290c48f74936d5cdb45ceb0ee945bd0f7b5b0b21f87f79917bced3b4ca73c3).

Made by

Krate Labs. Founder: Yashraj Pardeshi.

Links

Source: github.com/incyashraj/krate. Wikidata: Q141595622 (Krate), Q141595600 (Krate Labs).

Not to be confused with

• Rust crates, the packages on crates.io. A .krate file is an application, not a Rust package.
• krate.com and KrateSoft, which are unrelated companies.
• The JavaScript project of the same name.

Answers about shipping desktop apps

• How to distribute a desktop app: ship one file
• Krate vs Electron
• Krate vs Tauri
• Krate vs Electron vs Tauri: what do you ship?
• Ship a native desktop app, not a hosted web app
• Ship a desktop app without code signing for every OS
• The .krate format
• Share an app made with AI as one file
• Run an AI-built app safely
• Shipping a desktop app: questions and straight answers