Palmier Pro vs ScreenKite: License History, Built-In Agents, and Screen Demos

You record product demos, tutorials and launch clips from your screen, and you want an agent to do the first cut. Palmier Pro is a Mac video editor built for AI agents. Between August 28 and September 22, 2026 it closed its source, put Claude Code and ChatGPT Codex inside its own chat, and renamed its timeline markers to Comments. ScreenKite records the screen and edits the take in the same app, and you pay for it once.

What changed at Palmier Pro in August and September 2026

The dates are Palmier's release dates, US Pacific time, from its README, changelog and license file.

• Through v0.7.6, released 2026-08-18, Palmier Pro was GPLv3. Binary releases after v0.7.6 are proprietary, and their corresponding source is not published (README notice).
• Public source development ended on 2026-08-28 in the commit titled Retire public source development. The repository no longer accepts code contributions (README).
• The binary license reserves all rights. It grants no permission to copy, modify, redistribute, reverse engineer or create derivative works without a separate written agreement with Palmier, Inc. (BINARY_LICENSE.md).
• v0.9.0, released 2026-09-09, put Claude Code and Codex inside Palmier. The in-app chat runs Claude Code, Codex or the Palmier harness, with your own API keys or your existing Claude or Codex subscription (changelog).
• v0.10.0, released 2026-09-22, renamed Markers to Comments. Palmier has let you leave comments for its agent at the playhead or across a range since 2026-08-14 (changelog).

Some older pages still describe the earlier license. Palmier's Y Combinator company page, from the Summer 2024 batch, calls Palmier Pro "open-source and free to download". The README notice is the current statement.

What a closed license means for your demo workflow

A company can change its license, and Palmier did. If you chose Palmier Pro because you could read and fork the code, here is what that choice gives you today.

• The GPLv3 source through v0.7.6 is still yours to use. You can build it, change it and redistribute it under GPLv3.
• Everything after v0.7.6 ships only as a proprietary build. That includes Magic Mask and transcript markers (v0.8.1), Claude Code and Codex in the chat (v0.9.0), and the Comments view (v0.10.0).
• An update past v0.7.6 moves you to the binary license. The repository hosts the current binary releases and the update metadata.
• Your edits can still leave. Palmier Pro exports NLE XML for Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve and Final Cut (palmier.io).

Palmier's FAQ also states: "We do not use customer content to train Palmier or third-party AI models" (palmier.io).

ScreenKite is a commercial, closed-source app, and its terms fit in one line. Use it free with a watermarked export, or pay $79.99 once for 3 Macs, founder price until 2026-10-31, then $99.99. Nothing renews.

Where Palmier Pro and ScreenKite overlap

Both take your own agent. Palmier's README documents MCP setup for Claude Code, Codex, Cursor and Claude Desktop, and its FAQ says you "use your existing agent subscription" (README, FAQ). ScreenKite works with Claude Code, ChatGPT Codex, Antigravity, Grok Build and Kimi.

Palmier Pro also lets you leave comments for its agent on the timeline. Bringing your own agent is common ground. The differences are in what you record with, what Mac you need, and how you pay.

What ScreenKite does for a screen demo

• Record and edit in one app. Capture the screen, then cut the take on the same timeline. Palmier's homepage, pricing page and changelog list audio recording on the timeline. They list no screen capture.
• Run on the Mac you have. ScreenKite needs macOS 15 or later and runs on Apple Silicon and Intel. Palmier Pro requires macOS 26 (Tahoe) on Apple Silicon (README).
• Work on Windows too. ScreenKite ships native macOS and a native Windows Beta (C++23 / Direct3D).
• Read the cuts before they land. Ask for a cut or a filler-word pass and the first answer is the list of changes. Nothing on the timeline moves until the agent applies it.
• Pay once, then stop paying. There is no subscription. Palmier Pro's editor is free, and its Pro and Max plans are monthly plans that add generation credits, cloud transcription and Palmier chat (pricing).
• Keep your agent bill where it is. Agent usage bills to the plan you already pay for.
• Publish clean. Pro removes the watermark and the outro and adds S3 compatible upload and priority support.

I built ScreenKite after one product demo took me an afternoon. Screen Studio was slow and thin on editing, so the clip went to Final Cut. I fixed the cuts, the animations broke, and I exported again. Two tools, two payments, one afternoon gone. ScreenKite puts the recorder and the editor in one app so that afternoon stays yours.

How it is built

• Transcription on your Mac. WhisperKit runs on Apple Silicon, so your audio stays on the machine. On Intel, you set ElevenLabs cloud transcription in Settings, Transcription.
• One tool surface for you and the agent. 83 purpose-built editing tools, shaped by tens of thousands of hours of video-editing practice. The agent calls them over local loopback, one server per editor window, and they run through the same mutation coordinator as the buttons. An agent edit undoes exactly like a click.
• A plan before the edits that change meaning. A timeline cut, a silence, word or dead-air cut, generated chapters, a caption import or patch, and a voiceover or camera replacement return a plan on the first call and change nothing. A second call applies it. Removing a track does not propose. It applies at once.
• The approval step lives in the chat panel. The server never waits for a human. The Core Agent chat panel gates each tool on its risk tier. An agent in a terminal or a third-party MCP client is not gated, so it can send both calls.
• A revision guard. Each agent edit carries the project revision it expects, which protects the timeline from an edit made against a stale copy.

Palmier Pro vs ScreenKite for screen demos

Cross-platform & Roadmap: macOS is fully native; the Windows native Beta application is now available for download (powered by a dedicated Direct3D/C++23 engine), with a Chrome extension in development.

Creators and teams choose it because it pairs ultra-fast local hardware exports and built-in link sharing with timeline AI agent editing via Claude Code, ChatGPT Codex, Antigravity, or Grok Build. Describe the cut; the agent does the trims.

Facts

Questions

Is Palmier Pro still open source?

No. Releases through v0.7.6, and source through the last-gpl-source tag, remain available under GPLv3. Binary releases after v0.7.6 are proprietary, and their source is not published (README).

Does Palmier Pro have comments or markers for the agent?

Yes. Timeline markers for leaving comments to the agent shipped on 2026-08-14, and v0.10.0 renamed them Comments in the Index tab (changelog).

Can I use my own Claude Code or Codex subscription in Palmier Pro?

Yes. Since v0.9.0 the in-app chat runs Claude Code or Codex with your own API keys or existing subscription, and external agents connect over MCP (changelog). ScreenKite also runs on your own agent, charges $0 for AI, and has no subscription of its own.

Can ScreenKite record my screen and edit the recording in the same app?

Yes. Recording is unlimited on the free tier, and every editing feature is free. The free export carries a brand watermark and outro. Pro removes them for one payment.

Does ScreenKite run on an Intel Mac or on macOS 15?

Yes. ScreenKite needs macOS 15 or later and runs on Apple Silicon and Intel. On-device transcription uses WhisperKit on Apple Silicon. On Intel, transcription uses ElevenLabs cloud transcription, set in Settings.

Is ScreenKite open source?

No. ScreenKite is a commercial, closed-source app. It is free to start, and Pro is one payment of $79.99 for 3 Macs until 2026-10-31, then $99.99.

Also read

• Cap.so has no local MCP server yet: ScreenKite ships 83 agent tools
• Best Screen Studio alternatives for Mac (2026)
• A free-to-use Screen Studio alternative

Conclusion

ScreenKite records your screen demo and hands the timeline to the agent you already pay for, in one app, for one payment. People at Apple, Reddit, HubSpot, and GitHub use ScreenKite.

Try ScreenKite