Comparison

APX vs Paperclip: A project crew or an agent company?

Both are open source, self-hosted and can run Claude Code, Codex and other agents on tracked tasks. APX organizes a crew around your projects; Paperclip models an AI company with an org chart, goals, budgets and approvals.

Sources checked October 30, 2026Sources

The short answer

Choose APX if…

You want an ongoing crew for your projects, with distinct roles, a shared task board and work you can follow in one place.
Agents hand off work; tasks keep their status, discussion and results.
Desktop app for macOS, Windows and Linux; Android app, web panel and terminal.
MIT. Model and service usage can have separate costs.

Choose Paperclip if…

You want to run business goals through an org chart of agents, with budgets per company, project and agent, and approval gates you control.
Orchestrating a team of agents as a company: goals, org chart, tasks and governance.

At a glance

Scroll the table to compare both products.

APX vs Paperclip — At a glance
What matters	APX [1]	Paperclip [2]
Main focus	A team organized around projects, roles and tracked tasks.Source 1 ↗Source 2 ↗	Orchestrating a team of agents as a company: goals, org chart, tasks and governance.Source 1 ↗Source 2 ↗
How you use it	Desktop app for macOS, Windows and Linux; Android app, web panel and terminal.Source 1 ↗Source 2 ↗Source 3 ↗	Web dashboard served by a Node.js server, usable from a phone browser; CLI and API.Source 1 ↗Source 2 ↗
Where work runs	Your computer or a server you control. Model providers receive the prompts you send.Source 1 ↗Source 2 ↗	Self-hosted on your laptop, Docker or a server, with embedded or your own Postgres. No Paperclip account required.Source 1 ↗Source 2 ↗
Working together	Agents hand off work; tasks keep their status, discussion and results.Source 1 ↗Source 2 ↗	Roles and reporting lines, delegation through the org chart, approvals; teammates can sign in with authenticated mode.Source 1 ↗Source 2 ↗
Context over time	Persistent memory, project context and reusable skills.Source 1 ↗Source 2 ↗	Goals linked to projects and tasks, versioned skills; built-in memory is on the roadmap, with experimental memory connectors.Source 1 ↗Source 2 ↗
Recurring work and chats	Scheduled routines and connected chat channels, including Telegram and Discord.Source 1 ↗Source 2 ↗	Heartbeats and routines on cron, webhook or API triggers; experimental chat channels such as Slack, Discord and Telegram.Source 1 ↗Source 2 ↗
Models and extensions	Model providers, Claude Code, Codex and ACP agents; MCP and skills.Source 1 ↗Source 2 ↗Source 3 ↗	Claude Code, Codex, Gemini CLI, OpenCode, Hermes, OpenClaw and more; plugins, custom MCP servers and app connectors.Source 1 ↗Source 2 ↗Source 3 ↗
License and costs	MIT. Model and service usage can have separate costs.Source 1 ↗Source 2 ↗	MIT. A cloud version has a waitlist; agent and model usage can cost extra.Source 1 ↗Source 2 ↗

With the models you already use

APX doesn't tie you to one model. Use your plan, an API or a local model, and give each agent the one that suits it.

ChatGPTYour ChatGPT plan.
ClaudeAnthropic's API, with your key.
GeminiGoogle's Gemini API.
Claude CodeIts sessions sit beside your chats.
CodexIts sessions sit beside your chats.
ACP agentsOpenCode, Qwen Code, goose and more.
OpenAI-compatible APIsAnything that speaks that API.
Local modelsOllama or LM Studio, with no key.

What makes the difference

Paperclip treats agents as employees of a company: each has a boss, a role and a budget, and work moves through approvals and spend limits. APX centers named agents on your projects, with memory, routines and chat channels for day-to-day work. Both delegate, track tasks and run coding agents such as Claude Code and Codex, so the choice is about the shape of the work, not about having a team.

APX ↗Paperclip ↗

Try it on real work

Give both the same goal, such as a weekly market brief, using Claude Code as the agent. Compare how you approve the plan, cap spending and find the result a week later.

Sources and scope

Written by APX, using the primary sources below. This is a documented-feature comparison, not a hands-on benchmark or a security audit. Features, plans and terms can change. A missing detail is not a missing feature.

Sources checked October 30, 2026