OpenHands runs the whole task. Aura checks the whole task actually got done.
OpenHands is an open-source autonomous software agent — it plans, edits, runs commands, browses, and works a task end to end, usually inside a container. Aura is not another agent. It is the semantic layer that reads what an agent like OpenHands changed and decides whether it matched the goal.
What each one is for
What OpenHands is great at
- End-to-end autonomy
Plan, edit, run, test, iterate. It goes further without a human than most tools will attempt.
- Sandboxed execution
Running inside a container makes unattended work far less frightening.
- Genuinely open
MIT-licensed, large community, and a research programme attached to it.
- Benchmarked in public
SWE-bench numbers you can check, which is more than most of this category offers.
What Aura adds on top
- A verdict on the outcome
A benchmark score is a claim about the agent. A proof is a claim about your commit. Aura produces the second one.
- Semantic diff on a large change
Autonomous runs produce big diffs. Reading them as functions and call edges is the difference between a review and a shrug.
- A deletion guard
The longer the autonomous run, the more likely something got tidied away. Aura names it and traces its callers.
- A desktop and a team plane
Aura is a product you sit in front of, with source control, Trace, Crew and a collision radar, not only a runtime.
Dimension by dimension
Side by side
When to pick which
Pick OpenHands if…
- You want a fully autonomous agent that plans and executes on its own.
- A container-per-task model fits how you work.
Pick Aura if…
- You already have an agent and the problem is trusting its output.
- You need the change explained to someone who did not watch it happen.
Keep OpenHands. Add the control layer.
They are complementary. Let OpenHands do the work; let Aura read the commit, check it against the goal and record the result. Both are open source, so neither traps you.
Aura & OpenHands
Is Aura an autonomous agent?
Crew is an autonomous work-loop — it claims unblocked tasks, works them in isolated worktrees and merges only what proves out — but the code is written by whichever engine you point it at, including OpenHands-style agents.
Can I run both?
Yes. Aura tracks the repository, not the agent, so anything that commits gets the check.
Ship with proof, not hope
Free public beta for macOS and Linux. Point it at a repo and keep driving OpenHands, now with a semantic diff, a verdict and a record on every change.