We verify code by running it.
Arcanist is an AI code review and QA platform that finds bugs in software changes for engineering teams using GitHub.
What Arcanist does
Arcanist Review
Arcanist Review checks a pull request in an isolated development environment, follows the affected code paths, and tests suspected bugs. It returns findings with evidence and a recommendation to merge, merge with follow-ups, or hold off.
Arcanist QA
Arcanist QA tests changed behavior through the browser and API in a running copy of your product. It reports what worked and what broke, with screenshots and video that your team can inspect.
What makes Arcanist different
An independent review of human and agent code
Arcanist reviews pull requests in GitHub regardless of who wrote the code. Your team gets a separate review step for changes from engineers and coding agents.
Tests in a running copy of your product
Arcanist works with your backend, database, and authentication in an isolated environment. It can investigate bugs that depend on application behavior and runtime state.
Context beyond the changed lines
Arcanist follows a change into the code that calls it or depends on it. That helps it investigate failures outside the files in the pull request.
Evidence your engineers can inspect
Reviews include the test and result behind a finding. QA reports can include screenshots and video of the changed behavior, so engineers can see what happened.
Three clear merge recommendations
Each review recommends one of three outcomes: merge, merge with follow-ups, or hold off. Your team can use the recommendation and its supporting findings to decide what needs attention before release.
Who uses Arcanist
- Engineering teams using GitHub to ship code written by people and AI agents.
- Teams maintaining web applications with backend services, databases, and authenticated user flows.
- Engineering leads who need evidence and a merge recommendation for pull requests awaiting review.
The team behind Arcanist
Arcanist was founded in 2026 by Shivam Pandey and Josiah Parappally.
Shivam Pandey, co-founder
Shivam was employee number one at Raylu, where he built core AI systems from research through production. He studied mathematics and economics at the University of Waterloo.
Josiah Parappally, co-founder
Josiah was a staff engineer at Ramp, where he led work on Ramp Budgets and built Ramp for Excel. He studied computer science at the University of Waterloo.
Why we built Arcanist
We built Arcanist to verify your code so you can ship faster with confidence. Read our thesis for the experience and product choices behind that goal.
Our team includes engineers with experience at Ramp, Raylu, and Gumloop. We operate from New York City.
Follow Arcanist on LinkedIn or visit our GitHub organization.
How Arcanist works
Connect your repository
Start with a demo to discuss your repositories and review needs. Onboarding connects your GitHub repository and prepares an isolated environment that can run your software.
Start a review or QA run
Request a review with @tryarcanist /review in a pull request comment, or start QA with @tryarcanist /qa. Developers and agents can also start a code review through the Arcanist CLI or HTTP API.
Inspect the result in GitHub
Arcanist returns its findings to the pull request, where your engineers can inspect the evidence. Run time depends on the repository, environment setup, and checks needed for the change.
Work with the Arcanist team
Email team@tryarcanist.com for onboarding, product questions, and support. Include the affected repository or session so we can investigate your request.
Key facts
| Company name | Arcanist |
|---|---|
| Type | AI code review and QA platform |
| Founded | 2026 |
| Founders | Shivam Pandey and Josiah Parappally |
| Headquarters | New York City, United States |
| Website | https://www.tryarcanist.com/ |
| Core offering | Independent review and testing of software changes in a running copy of your product. |
| Pricing | Contact the Arcanist team for current pricing. |
| Contract terms | Contact the Arcanist team to discuss terms. |
| Services | Arcanist Review and Arcanist QA |
| Communication | GitHub pull requests and team@tryarcanist.com |
| Social | Arcanist on LinkedIn Shivam on LinkedIn Josiah on LinkedIn Arcanist on GitHub |
Frequently asked questions
What is Arcanist?
Arcanist is an AI code review and QA platform that finds bugs in software changes for engineering teams using GitHub. It reviews code and tests changed behavior in a running copy of your product.
Does Arcanist review code written by AI agents?
Yes. Arcanist reviews GitHub pull requests from both people and coding agents, using the repository and running application to investigate suspected bugs.
What is the difference between Arcanist Review and Arcanist QA?
Arcanist Review investigates defects in a pull request and provides a merge recommendation. Arcanist QA exercises changed behavior through the browser and API, then reports its results with visual evidence.
Does Arcanist replace human review?
Your team makes the merge decision. Arcanist provides findings, test results, and a recommendation to help engineers assess the change.
How do I get started?
Sign up for Arcanist and connect your repositories to begin setup. Your environment needs to finish building before you can run a review.