Course · 7 chapters
Coding Agents Landscape
A 2026 survey of every major AI coding agent — Claude Code, OpenAI Codex, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot, Cursor — with side-by-side comparison and decision frame for picking your stack.
What you'll be able to do
- A 12-minute orientation to five coding agents whose feature lists have converged near 1M context — so the real decision is fit, not capability.
- Anthropic's terminal-native coding agent — architecture, 1M-token context, permissions, cost model, and honest trade-offs for engineering managers evaluating their options.
- OpenAI's async-first coding agent — CLI and cloud task architecture, sandboxed execution, permissions model, cost structure, and honest trade-offs for engineering managers evaluating their options.
- Google's open-source terminal agent — being sunset for consumer, Pro, and Ultra users on 18 June 2026 in favor of the closed-source Antigravity CLI.
- Microsoft/GitHub's IDE-native coding assistant ecosystem — surfaces, architecture, context handling, permissions, cost model, and honest trade-offs for engineering managers evaluating their options.
- The AI-native IDE that forks VS Code and weaves multiple models into every editing surface — architecture, context handling, permissions, cost model, and honest trade-offs for engineering managers evaluating their options.
What's inside
- 1Coding Agents Landscape: Start Here
A 12-minute orientation to five coding agents whose feature lists have converged near 1M context — so the real decision is fit, not capability.
- 2Claude Code Overview
Anthropic's terminal-native coding agent — architecture, 1M-token context, permissions, cost model, and honest trade-offs for engineering managers evaluating their options.
- 3OpenAI Codex Overview
OpenAI's async-first coding agent — CLI and cloud task architecture, sandboxed execution, permissions model, cost structure, and honest trade-offs for engineering managers evaluating their options.
- 4Gemini CLI Overview
Google's open-source terminal agent — being sunset for consumer, Pro, and Ultra users on 18 June 2026 in favor of the closed-source Antigravity CLI.
- 5GitHub Copilot Overview
Microsoft/GitHub's IDE-native coding assistant ecosystem — surfaces, architecture, context handling, permissions, cost model, and honest trade-offs for engineering managers evaluating their options.
- 6Cursor Overview
The AI-native IDE that forks VS Code and weaves multiple models into every editing surface — architecture, context handling, permissions, cost model, and honest trade-offs for engineering managers evaluating their options.
- 7Picking the Right Agent
A decision framework for engineering managers evaluating coding agents — dimensions that matter, team archetypes, multi-agent strategies, and rollout playbook.
Earn a certificate
Complete all chapters to receive your certificate of completion.