paca
Paca is a self-hosted, open-source project management platform that treats AI agents as equal Scrum team members alongside humans. Built in Go with Apache 2.0 licensing, it offers Jira/Trello/ClickUp-like functionality with native AI collaboration, real-time boards, BDD support, and a WASM plugin system for deep customization.
Key facts
Objective fields from the source. Values we can't verify are shown as “Unknown” rather than guessed.
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Repository | Paca-AI/paca |
| Owner | Paca-AI |
| Primary language | Go |
| License | Apache-2.0 — OSI-approved |
| Stars | 1.5k |
| Forks | 101 |
| Open issues | 5 |
| Latest release | v0.8.0 (2026-07-03) |
| Last updated | 2026-07-07 |
| Source | https://github.com/Paca-AI/paca |
What paca is
Written in Go, Paca provides a Scrumban board with real-time Socket.IO updates, in-app AI chat, MCP server integration, WASM-based plugin sandboxing (backend) and module bundles (frontend), System Design Documents, and OpenHands-powered agent containers. Self-hosted via Docker Compose; data and execution remain on-premises.
Get the paca source
Clone the repository and explore it locally.
git clone https://github.com/Paca-AI/paca.gitcd paca# follow the project's README for install & configurationNeed it deployed, integrated, or customized instead? DEV.co ships production installs.
Best use cases
Implementation considerations
- Installation requires Docker Compose on a Linux server; interactive install script and manual configuration templates are provided. Estimate 1–2 hours for initial deployment and DNS/TLS setup via Caddy.
- AI agent execution runs inside isolated OpenHands sandbox containers; ensure your host has sufficient CPU and memory (baseline not specified in README; requires testing for your team size).
- Plugin development requires Go/Rust/AssemblyScript knowledge for backend WASM modules and JavaScript for frontend UI modules. The plugin marketplace model suggests community plugins exist, but availability and quality are Unknown.
- Configuration is project-level and file-driven (workflows, statuses, fields, sprint rules, agent behavior). Teams must define their Scrum process upfront; ad-hoc changes to the config model may require restart or reload.
- Real-time Socket.IO updates assume stable network; mobile/offline support and conflict resolution for concurrent edits are not mentioned. Suitability for distributed teams with poor connectivity is Unknown.
When to avoid it — and what to weigh
- You need a mature, battle-tested enterprise project tool with years of production hardening — Paca v0.8.0 is recent (launched March 2026) with only ~1.5k stars and 5 open issues. While active, it has not yet accumulated the operational maturity and migration history of Jira or Monday.com across thousands of teams.
- Your team operates primarily without AI agent involvement — Paca's core value proposition is human–AI collaboration. If your team has no plans to adopt AI agents or prefers a lightweight task tracker, Paca's agent-centric design and plugin overhead may not justify the adoption cost.
- You need out-of-the-box integrations with dozens of SaaS tools — Paca's integration ecosystem is not documented in the README. Custom integrations would likely require WASM plugin development; native connectors to Slack, GitHub, Salesforce, etc. are not mentioned.
- You lack in-house DevOps capacity to self-host, patch, and maintain Docker infrastructure — Self-hosted projects require operational overhead: Docker Compose management, OS updates, backup strategy, monitoring, and upgrade coordination. Cloud-hosted SaaS (Jira Cloud, ClickUp, Monday) removes this burden.
License & commercial use
Apache License 2.0 is a permissive OSI-approved license allowing commercial use, modification, and redistribution with clear attribution and liability disclaimer. The license is well-established, widely understood, and places no restrictions on how you use Paca's code or data within your organization.
Apache 2.0 explicitly permits commercial use. You may deploy Paca in commercial settings, charge for services built on top of it, and modify the code without license restrictions. However, always include a copy of the Apache license and document changes. No commercial support contract, SLA, or legal indemnification is mentioned; commercial support would likely require a separate agreement with the Paca-AI team or a third-party provider. For mission-critical deployments, verify support availability before adopting.
DEV.co evaluation signals
Editorial assessment — not user reviews. Directional, with an explicit confidence level.
| Signal | Assessment |
|---|---|
| Maintenance | Active |
| Documentation | Adequate |
| License clarity | Clear |
| Deployment complexity | Moderate |
| DEV.co fit | Strong |
| Assessment confidence | Medium |
Paca stores all project data and agent execution on your infrastructure (self-hosted). Key considerations: (1) WASM plugin sandbox uses capability-based permissions; plugins declare required host functions and cannot exceed those permissions. Verify sandbox integrity through code review or audit if deploying untrusted plugins. (2) AI agents execute in isolated OpenHands containers; ensure container runtime is updated and host is patched to prevent breakout. (3) No mention of encryption at rest, audit logging, role-based access control (RBAC), or secrets management. These should be verified in full docs or codebase before handling sensitive data. (4) JWT secrets and database passwords must be strong and rotated per your security policy. (5) Caddy TLS setup is included; verify it matches your organization's certificate and CA policies.
Alternatives to consider
Jira Cloud + Jira Automation + third-party AI plugins
Jira is battle-tested, vendor-supported, has extensive integrations, and runs in managed cloud. Trade-offs: proprietary, per-seat cost ($8–$20/month), limited AI-as-teammate model, and data on Atlassian servers. Suitable if you need enterprise maturity and don't require on-premises data sovereignty.
ClickUp or Monday.com with custom automations
Both are SaaS, feature-rich, and support AI add-ons and automation. Trade-offs: cloud-only, per-seat cost, limited customization (locked behind enterprise tiers), and no true AI-as-teammate collaboration. Suitable for teams comfortable with vendor lock-in and monthly spend.
Open-source alternatives: Taiga, Plane, or Openproject
All are open-source, self-hosted, and support customization. Taiga and Plane focus on Agile/Kanban; Openproject is heavier and more enterprise. Trade-offs: weaker or no AI integration, smaller communities, and less active development than Paca. Suitable if AI collaboration is not a priority.
Build on paca with DEV.co software developers
Deploy Paca on your infrastructure with one Docker command. Customize workflows, plugins, and agent behavior to match your team's process. All code is open-source; your data stays on-premises.
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paca FAQ
Can I use Paca without AI agents?
What AI models or agents does Paca support?
How do I back up my Paca data?
Can I migrate from Jira or Monday to Paca?
Custom software development services
DEV.co is a software development agency delivering custom software development services to companies building on open source. Our software developers and web developers design, integrate, and ship production systems — spanning web development, APIs, AI, data, and cloud. If paca is part of your mcp servers roadmap, our team can implement, customize, migrate, and maintain it.
Ready to bring AI agents into your Scrum process?
Deploy Paca on your infrastructure with one Docker command. Customize workflows, plugins, and agent behavior to match your team's process. All code is open-source; your data stays on-premises.