Droid CLI vs Verdent

Droid CLI 72

Harness reading of the framework line. --restrict-tools, --disabled-tools, --additional-tools and --list-tools control built-in tools per run, and disabledTools in mcp.json keeps named MCP tools out of context. We found nothing on deferred tool loading (18). Output is text, json, stream-json or stream-jsonrpc, and the JSON result carries turns and duration. The droid exec help lists no flag for a turn or spend limit (10). Exit codes 0, 1 and 2 are documented, and a run that exceeds its autonomy level stops with a non-zero code and no partial changes, per the docs (15). --session-id continues a session, --fork branches one, and --worktree isolates parallel runs (16). Headless runs are read-only without flags, and TypeScript and Python SDKs wrap the CLI. A run needs a paid Factory account and an API key (13).

Verdent 35

Harness reading. MCP servers per project or globally, subagents, skills and rules, but no per-tool disabling or deferred loading found (10). No output-size, turn-limit or budget controls for a run were found beyond credit balances (5). No exit codes or error format, since there is no headless mode (3). Parallel workers in git worktrees and a review column make runs reviewable and reversible, with no resume by ID documented (10). No CLI, API or SDK. A pipeline can only reach Manager through a paired Telegram, Slack or Feishu bot (7). 10+5+3+10+7 = 35.

Droid CLI 63

Harness reading of the framework checklist, as for the other harnesses. 30 for what leaves the machine by default, 20 for approvals and sandboxing, 15 for prompt-injection posture, 15 for audit and 20 for the security programme. The agent loop runs locally and the docs say no copy of the repository is uploaded or indexed. Prompts and context go to the model endpoints. Usage metrics go to Factory's collector by default, with no opt-out in the pages read outside an airgapped deployment, and message content is never sent to it. The security page says code is not used as training data. Zero data retention is listed as a Business plan item. Headless runs use a long-lived fk- key (17). droid exec is read-only by default, autonomy has four levels, permission rules allow, ask or block commands, and an OS sandbox confines commands with Seatbelt or bubblewrap and a network proxy. The sandbox is off by default and --skip-permissions-unsafe skips every prompt (16). The sandbox page names prompt injection and states what the sandbox does not stop, MCP approvals are bound to the server's command or URL, and Droid Shield scans commits for secrets. The Agent Safety page was not read (9). An organisation audit log, OpenTelemetry export and session tags exist, with audit logging listed from the Business plan up (10). A disclosure address (security@factory.com), SOC 2 and ISO 42001 named on the security page, per the 9 October check, and Security sections in the changelog. No security.txt (404 on 4 November), no bug bounty and no published advisories were found, OSV holds nothing for droid, and the trust centre was not readable (11).

Verdent 33

Framework reading (telemetry defaults, approvals, guardrails, sandboxing). Conversation history and tool results go to Verdent's US servers and on to Azure, Bedrock or Vertex, with zero data retention stated for Vertex and Bedrock only. Event logging to log.verdent.ai has no documented opt-out. BYOA keys stay on the machine (10). Plan Mode is read-only, Agent Mode asks before destructive commands and edits outside scope, and workers are isolated by git worktree, but there is no sandbox or network control and the approval list isn't enumerated (9). No prompt-injection guidance found, while web search and fetch results enter the context (2). Usage history in the dashboard, no audit log found (5). A security page with a disclosure address and a five-day acknowledgement, SOC 2 and ISO/IEC 42001 being pursued rather than held, no security.txt and no bug bounty (7). 10+9+2+5+7 = 33.

Droid CLI 79

Framework reading. The docs index links an OpenAPI file for the Factory public API, which we did not open, and the headless mode has a documented JSON-RPC surface with named methods. droid exec --list-tools --output-format json and droid rules check --json give machine-readable output. We found no published schema for the settings file (15). docs.factory.com/llms.txt lists a Markdown copy of every page (10). The overview says when to use the CLI, and the autonomy table says what each level allows, blocks and suits (16). Autonomy levels, output formats, sandbox modes and MCP server fields are enumerated with types and defaults (12). Examples on every page read, exit codes 0, 1 and 2, and a JSON result with is_error and subtype, with no error catalogue (11). A changelog by CLI version with dates and an RSS feed, 236 entries back to 30 September 2025 (15).

Verdent 55

Framework reading for a harness. No schema for settings or output, only mcp.json examples in the standard mcpServers shape (5). Every current docs page has a Markdown twin at the same path with .md, though no llms.txt (10). The docs say when to use Agent Mode or Plan Mode and what Plan Mode can't do, but the Agent Mode page lists the actions that need approval only as "certain tool executions" and "destructive operations" (12). Modes and BYOA agent types are enumerated, permissions are not (5). Examples on the MCP, BYOA and messaging pages, and a recovery page, with no error codes (8). Version numbers and a dated public changelog (15). The archived 1.0 docs are still served beside the current ones. 5+10+12+5+8+15 = 55.

Droid CLI 79

The changelog's newest entry is CLI v1.3.0 of 4 November 2026 (30). 67 dated changelog entries between 6 August and 4 November 2026, 20 of them after 9 October (20). The public tracker had 33 open issues that are not pull requests on 9 October 2026, most with no reply, and three closed in the previous week after two or three comments, not re-read on 4 November. Support is also by email and Discord, where reply times are not visible (9). The TypeScript SDK repository moved to 0.10.0 with examples tested in CI on 20 October 2026, and the Python SDK is at 0.5.0 of 24 September 2026 (15). The npm package is published from GitHub Actions through a trusted publisher and the installer checks a checksum, per the 9 October check. There is no public CI for the CLI (5).

Verdent 61

Closed service. v2.18.0 on 29 October 2026, eight days before this check (30). More than three dated releases in the 90 days from 8 August, among them 2.10.0 to 2.18.0 (20). A dated public changelog, a support address, Discord and a subreddit, with no public tracker to read reply times (8). No official SDK or MCP server to keep current (0). No public packages or CI to judge (3). 30+20+8+0+3 = 61.

Droid CLI 54

Local-package reading, as for the other closed-source harnesses. An install script that verifies a SHA-256 checksum, a PowerShell installer, a Homebrew cask and the droid npm package (Node 20 or later) with prebuilt binaries for Linux, macOS and Windows on x64 and arm64, per the 9 October check (20). The source is not published. The public repository holds documentation only, so there is no public CI or test suite for the CLI (0). Bugs are tracked in the open at Factory-AI/factory. On 9 October 2026 it had 33 open issues that are not pull requests, most with no reply, and three closed in the previous week with replies. Issues were not re-read on 4 November because GitHub's API refused our requests (10). Every release has a dated, versioned changelog entry and deprecations get their own section. The line moved from 0.251.0 to 1.0.0 on 29 October, with three minors since, so the version number has signalled breaking changes for only six days (9). CLI v1.0.0 was released on 29 October 2026 and v1.3.0 on 4 November (15). The 99 per cent availability target on factory.com/sla is not scored on this reading.

Verdent 43

Local-package reading, as for the other closed-source harnesses. The desktop app installs from verdent.ai with macOS 11 or later and 64-bit Windows 10 and 11 stated, and the extension from the editor marketplaces, but not from a package registry (15). No public CI or test suite, since the source isn't published (0). No public issue tracker, every task runs through Verdent's servers, and no status page was found, so there is no readable record (5). A dated changelog by version, with the end of Free Mode called out in v2.18.0, but no breaking-change sections (8). 2.18.0, generally available (15). 15+0+5+8+15 = 43.

Droid CLI 10

Harness reading of the published rubric. This is paid, closed software tied to a subscription, so the self-hosted rule does not apply. No payment protocol (0). Plan prices are public, $20, $100 and $200 a month for individuals and $60 a team plus $40 a seat for Teams, but included usage is given only as rolling rate limits and multiples of Pro (10). No free tier or trial was found on the pricing pages. Using your own model key is free up to an allowance, but only on a paid plan (0). A person signs in through a browser to subscribe and to create the API key. The Service Accounts API can issue keys only inside an existing organisation (0).

Verdent 20

Harness reading of the published rubric, scored on the Verdent subscription the agent needs. No payment protocol (0). Plan prices from $5 a month, top-up prices and the credit value of about $0.059 are public without a login (20). Free Mode and the free trial ended on 29 October 2026, so there is no free tier (0). A person signs up in a browser (0). 0+20+0+0 = 20.