--- title: "agent-starter-pack vs agent-kernel" type: "comparison" canonical_url: "https://www.graphcanon.com/compare/googlecloudplatform-agent-starter-pack-vs-yaalalabs-agent-kernel" tools: ["googlecloudplatform-agent-starter-pack", "yaalalabs-agent-kernel"] --- # agent-starter-pack vs agent-kernel *GraphCanon updated Aug 20, 2026* ## Verdict Pick agent-starter-pack if agent-starter-pack offers built-in CI/CD, evaluation tools, and observability for deploying generative AI agents on Google Cloud with Python; pick agent-kernel if agent-kernel provides an operating system for scalable enterprise AI agents, supporting deployment and orchestration at scale with native integration support for MCP and A2A. [agent-starter-pack](http://goo.gle/agents-cli) reports 6.5k GitHub stars, 1.5k forks, and 49 open issues, last pushed Jul 21, 2026. [agent-kernel](https://kernel.yaala.ai/) has 113 stars, 60 forks, and 128 open issues, last pushed Aug 7, 2026. Figures are from public GitHub metadata via [agent-starter-pack's repository](https://github.com/GoogleCloudPlatform/agent-starter-pack) and [agent-kernel's repository](https://github.com/yaalalabs/agent-kernel). | | [agent-starter-pack](/tools/googlecloudplatform-agent-starter-pack.md) | [agent-kernel](/tools/yaalalabs-agent-kernel.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Tagline | Ship AI Agents to Google Cloud in minutes with built-in CI/CD, evaluation, and observability | The Operating System for Scalable Enterprise AI Agents | | Stars | 6,537 | 113 | | Forks | 1,502 | 60 | | Open issues | 49 | 128 | | Language | Python | Python | | Adopt for | agent-starter-pack offers built-in CI/CD, evaluation tools, and observability for deploying generative AI agents on Google Cloud with Python. | Agent-kernel provides an operating system for scalable enterprise AI agents, supporting deployment and orchestration at scale with native integration support for MCP and A2A. | | Persona | - | - | | Runtime | - | - | | License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 | | Categories | AI Agents, Evaluation & Observability | AI Agents | ## Trust and health _Sourced signals - not a safety guarantee. No winner column._ | | [agent-starter-pack](/tools/googlecloudplatform-agent-starter-pack.md) | [agent-kernel](/tools/yaalalabs-agent-kernel.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Maintenance | Active (82%) | Very active (96%) | | Days since push | 29d | 2d | | Open issues (now) | 49 | 128 | | Stars delta | +18 (30d) | Unknown | | Open issues delta | +1 (30d) | Unknown | | Full report | [trust report](/tools/googlecloudplatform-agent-starter-pack/trust.md) | [trust report](/tools/yaalalabs-agent-kernel/trust.md) | ## Shared compatibility - **Python**: [agent-starter-pack](/tools/googlecloudplatform-agent-starter-pack.md) - Python runtime; [agent-kernel](/tools/yaalalabs-agent-kernel.md) - Python runtime ## Decision facts: agent-starter-pack - **Requirements:** Depends on Python 3.10+.; Requires the Google Cloud SDK for interacting with GCP services.; Terraform is needed for deployment purposes.; Make utility should be installed for development tasks. - **Adopt for:** agent-starter-pack offers built-in CI/CD, evaluation tools, and observability for deploying generative AI agents on Google Cloud with Python. ## Decision facts: agent-kernel - **Requirements:** It requires Python versions between 3.12 and 3.13.x.; Supports deployment to various environments such as AWS Lambda, ECS, Azure Functions, or Container Apps via one Terraform module. - **Adopt for:** Agent-kernel provides an operating system for scalable enterprise AI agents, supporting deployment and orchestration at scale with native integration support for MCP and A2A. ## Choose when ### Choose agent-starter-pack if… - Requirements: Depends on Python 3.10+.; Requires the Google Cloud SDK for interacting with GCP services.; Terraform is needed for deployment purposes.; Make utility should be installed for development tasks.. - Tags unique to agent-starter-pack: agents, gcp, gemini, genai-agents. - Also covers Evaluation & Observability. - You are working with Google Cloud and wish to deploy generative AI agents quickly using production-ready templates that come with integrated CI/CD pipelines. ### Choose agent-kernel if… - Requirements: It requires Python versions between 3.12 and 3.13.x.; Supports deployment to various environments such as AWS Lambda, ECS, Azure Functions, or Container Apps via one Terraform module.. - Tags unique to agent-kernel: a2a, adk, aws, azure. - If you require seamless scalability across different cloud providers like AWS and Azure without lock-in or rewrites. ## When NOT to use agent-starter-pack - Your project is hosted on a cloud provider other than Google Cloud, as this tool is optimized for GCP services and uses Terraform specifically configured for deployment with it. - You do not need or want built-in CI/CD pipelines and evaluation tools, preferring to manage these components separately through different tools or self-configured setups. ## When NOT to use agent-kernel - If your project is confined to a single, specific AI framework which doesn't require the flexibility Agent-kernel offers. - When you do not have Python version 3.12 - 3.13.x, as it's the required runtime environment. ## Common questions ### What is the difference between agent-starter-pack and agent-kernel? agent-starter-pack: Ship AI Agents to Google Cloud in minutes with built-in CI/CD, evaluation, and observability. agent-kernel: The Operating System for Scalable Enterprise AI Agents. See the comparison table for live GitHub stats and shared categories. ### When should I choose agent-starter-pack over agent-kernel? Choose agent-starter-pack over agent-kernel when Requirements: Depends on Python 3.10+.; Requires the Google Cloud SDK for interacting with GCP services.; Terraform is needed for deployment purposes.; Make utility should be installed for development tasks.; Tags unique to agent-starter-pack: agents, gcp, gemini, genai-agents; Also covers Evaluation & Observability; You are working with Google Cloud and wish to deploy generative AI agents quickly using production-ready templates that come with integrated CI/CD pipelines. ### When should I choose agent-kernel over agent-starter-pack? Choose agent-kernel over agent-starter-pack when Requirements: It requires Python versions between 3.12 and 3.13.x.; Supports deployment to various environments such as AWS Lambda, ECS, Azure Functions, or Container Apps via one Terraform module.; Tags unique to agent-kernel: a2a, adk, aws, azure; If you require seamless scalability across different cloud providers like AWS and Azure without lock-in or rewrites. ### When should I avoid agent-starter-pack? Your project is hosted on a cloud provider other than Google Cloud, as this tool is optimized for GCP services and uses Terraform specifically configured for deployment with it. You do not need or want built-in CI/CD pipelines and evaluation tools, preferring to manage these components separately through different tools or self-configured setups. ### When should I avoid agent-kernel? If your project is confined to a single, specific AI framework which doesn't require the flexibility Agent-kernel offers. When you do not have Python version 3.12 - 3.13.x, as it's the required runtime environment. ### Is agent-starter-pack or agent-kernel more popular on GitHub? agent-starter-pack has more GitHub stars (6,537 vs 113). Stars measure visibility, not whether either tool fits your constraints. ### Are agent-starter-pack and agent-kernel open source? Yes - both are open-source projects on GitHub (agent-starter-pack: Apache-2.0, agent-kernel: Apache-2.0). ### Where can I find alternatives to agent-starter-pack or agent-kernel? GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at [agent-starter-pack alternatives](/tools/googlecloudplatform-agent-starter-pack/alternatives) and [agent-kernel alternatives](/tools/yaalalabs-agent-kernel/alternatives) ([agent-starter-pack markdown twin](/tools/googlecloudplatform-agent-starter-pack/alternatives.md), [agent-kernel markdown twin](/tools/yaalalabs-agent-kernel/alternatives.md)), ranked by typed relationship edges rather than popularity votes. ### Is there a machine-readable version of this comparison? Yes. The markdown twin at [this comparison](/compare/googlecloudplatform-agent-starter-pack-vs-yaalalabs-agent-kernel.md) mirrors this page for agents and LLM crawlers, with the same stats table and FAQ answers. ### Which is better maintained, agent-starter-pack or agent-kernel? agent-starter-pack: Active. agent-kernel: Very active. Compare maintenance labels, days since push, and release cadence in the trust section below - stars alone do not measure maintenance. ### Where are the full trust reports for agent-starter-pack and agent-kernel? GraphCanon publishes per-repo trust reports with dated maintenance, provenance, and scan summaries: [agent-starter-pack trust report](/tools/googlecloudplatform-agent-starter-pack/trust); [agent-kernel trust report](/tools/yaalalabs-agent-kernel/trust). --- **Machine-readable endpoints** - JSON: [`/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=googlecloudplatform-agent-starter-pack`](/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=googlecloudplatform-agent-starter-pack) - LLM index: [/llms.txt](/llms.txt) - Full corpus: [/llms-full.txt](/llms-full.txt) _GraphCanon - The knowledge graph for AI development. https://www.graphcanon.com/_