Five coding agents sounds like leverage right up until a developer is the one keeping track of all five: one fixing a bug, one building a feature, one refactoring, and two waiting on input at the same time. AI did not create that problem. It exposed a workflow problem that was always going to surface once parallel development became normal instead of occasional.

What is new in GitLens 18?

GitLens 18 shifts the extension’s job. Instead of only showing Git history inside the IDE, it now brings full Git context, including everything AI agents are doing, directly to wherever a developer already works: VS Code and any VS Code based editor, plus Cursor, Windsurf, and Antigravity.

The commit graph is no longer just history

The commit graph now shows working changes across every open worktree, not just committed history. Agent sessions appear alongside them, so a developer can watch three agents work in three worktrees without switching tabs or hunting for terminals. A details panel sits next to the graph with three modes: review, compose, and compare, all without leaving the graph.

• Review mode surfaces an AI-assisted summary of changes before anyone else sees them, with severity flags on what needs attention first.
• Compose mode is Commit Composer built into the graph: turn a pile of changes, agent-written or not, into commits that actually tell the story of what changed.
• Compare mode shows what is ahead or behind a branch, file by file, useful for checking an agent’s output against the base branch before committing.

Agent activity, visualized

GitLens 18 adds an agent sessions view that mirrors what Kepler shows: which agents are idle, which need input, and which are actively writing code. A tree map view shows where development is concentrated across a repo’s files or commits, and that same view highlights where an agent is currently working in real time.

Visual History: understand a repo before touching it

Visual File History is now just Visual History, because it now works on a single file, a folder, or an entire repository. It shows additions, deletions, and every contributor over time, which turns it into a fast way to onboard: a new hire can look at twelve months of activity and see who has touched the most code, which is often the fastest way to know who to ask first.

Small details that add up

Branches can now be pinned so they stay visible at the top of the graph, and a branch can be focused to isolate its changes without losing the ability to zoom back out. The commit graph can also pop out into its own window, so a developer can keep a Kanban board of agent activity on one monitor and the code editor on another.

Frequently asked questions

Is GitLens free? GitLens is free to install from the VS Code Marketplace, with 40M+ installs to date.

Does GitLens work in Cursor or Windsurf? Yes. GitLens works in any VS Code based editor, including Cursor and Windsurf and Antigravity, and the team is also exploring support for the Cursor ADE directly.

How do I update to GitLens 18? Open the Extensions panel in your editor, search GitLens, and update. A pre-release channel is available for anyone who wants new features first.

If it has been a while since anyone on the team opened the commit graph, GitLens 18 is worth a second look. Update the extension and start from the home view to see what is already in progress.