One repo for the whole desktop app.

Routing, 24 themes, Fluent i18n, SQLite, keyring, tray, signed updates and a Cmd+K launcher are already wired. Run cargo run, then start deleting what you don't need.

Clone gpui-starter v0.3.0

$git clone https://github.com/freeoxide/gpui-starter.git

macOSLinuxWindows

Build requirements ↗

Then follow the quickstart→

$ cargo run
   Compiling gpui-starter v0.3.0
    Finished `dev` profile
     Running `target/debug/gpui-starter`

  ✓ lifecycle       first_run = true
  ✓ single-instance lock acquired
  ✓ themes          24 loaded, watching ./themes
  ✓ i18n            en, zh-CN
  ✓ sqlite          app support dir
  ✓ tray            menu bar registered

  window ready

$ cargo test
test lifecycle::first_run ............... ok
test config::migrate_v1_to_v3 ........... ok
test updater::rejects_bad_signature ..... ok
test i18n::all_keys_resolve_zh_cn ....... ok
test query::stale_while_revalidate ...... ok

test result: ok. 0 failed

$ cp themes/gruvbox.json themes/mine.json
  watcher  themes/mine.json added
  ✓ theme reloaded  no restart · 25 themes

$ vim i18n/zh-CN/app.ftl
  watcher  i18n/zh-CN/app.ftl changed
  ✓ fluent bundle rebuilt

illustrative output · your run logs the same subsystems

get started

Built on

RustGPUISQLiteFluentAccessKited25519keyringtokio

Four subsystems,
designed together.

Each one lives behind its own module. tray andtelemetry come out cleanly. Nothing else breaks.

App shell

replaces hand-rolled chrome

Custom title bar with drag regions and traffic lights, collapsible sidebar, status bar, route-based pages.

impl Render for PageRead the docs

Persistence

replaces sqlite glue · dirs · keyring

rusqlite storage, versioned JSON config with a migration chain, OS keyring for secrets.

db.migrate_to(V3)Read the docs

OS integration

replaces tauri plugins

Tray menu, native notifications with toast fallback, global hotkey, deep links through the instance guard.

gpui-starter://openRead the docs

gpui-query

replaces bespoke async state

TanStack-style caching for entities: stale-while-revalidate, retries, invalidation, infinite queries.

use_query("projects")Read the docs

Not a hello-world

Six pages, already wired.

Sidebar routing, theme switching, form validation and the command palette are all live the first time you run it. Delete the pages you don't need.

Home

Landing page for the shell, wired to gpui-query so you can see cached async data on first paint.

Form

gpui-form inputs bound to a struct, koruma validation rules, errors localized through Fluent.

Settings

Theme switcher, locale picker and telemetry consent gate, all persisted to versioned JSON config.

About

Version, build metadata and update check, backed by the ed25519-signed updater.

Diagnostics

Live subsystem health, active entities, theme metadata, and debug actions for support.

Notifications

Native OS notifications with in-app toast fallback and a persistent inbox the user can reopen.

See it running

The shell you get on the first run.

This cycles through five screens of it: sidebar routing, the theme picker, the Cmd+K launcher, a localized settings page, and form validation catching a bad email.

gpui-starter

Welcome to GPUI Starter

A boilerplate for building desktop apps with GPUI

24 themes

2 languages

100% Rust

Settings

Dark Mode

Theme

CatppuccinTokyo NightDraculaOne Dark

Search pages and commands...

⌂

Home

Open the Home page

☆

Form

Open the Form page

⚙

Settings

Open settings

设置

深色模式

语言

English简体中文

Create Account

Full Name

John Doe

invalid

Enter a valid email address

Password

••••

Create AccountReset

A minute with gpui-starter

One binary, start to ship.

Install, develop, test and ship with the same toolchain. Every step below is a real command from this repo.

terminal · install

$ cargo run
   Compiling gpui-starter v0.3.0
    Finished `dev` profile
     Running `target/debug/gpui-starter`

  ✓ lifecycle       first_run = true
  ✓ single-instance lock acquired
  ✓ themes          24 loaded, watching ./themes
  ✓ i18n            en, zh-CN
  ✓ sqlite          app support dir
  ✓ tray            menu bar registered

  window ready

$ cp themes/gruvbox.json themes/mine.json
  watcher  themes/mine.json added
  ✓ theme reloaded  no restart · 25 themes

$ vim i18n/zh-CN/app.ftl
  watcher  i18n/zh-CN/app.ftl changed
  ✓ fluent bundle rebuilt

$ cargo test
test lifecycle::first_run ............... ok
test config::migrate_v1_to_v3 ........... ok
test updater::rejects_bad_signature ..... ok
test i18n::all_keys_resolve_zh_cn ....... ok

test result: ok. 0 failed

$ bash scripts/macos-dev-app.sh
  bundling   GPUI Starter.app
  codesign   adhoc, hardened runtime
  ✓ target/app/GPUI Starter.app

$ open "$(bash scripts/macos-dev-app.sh)"

$ just release 0.3.0
  signing    manifest.json (ed25519)
  uploading  gh release v0.3.0
  assets     3 platforms
  ✓ clients verify and update on next check

By the numbers

What ships in the box.

themes, hot-reloaded

pages wired

locales (en, zh-CN)

webviews shipped

Batteries included

Real APIs, not a feature checklist.

Page routing

A page is an entity plus a route entry. Sidebar, Cmd+K launcher and deep links all read the same registry.

Routing docs

src/shell/route.rsrust

// register once: sidebar, Cmd+K and deep links follow
pub fn routes(cx: &mut App) -> Vec<Route> vec![
        Route::new(Page::Home).icon("house"),
        Route::new(Page::Form).icon("file-text"),
        Route::new(Page::Settings).icon("settings"),
        Route::new(Page::Diagnostics).dev_only(),
    ]

Theming

24 themes, hot-reloaded.

Every theme is a plain JSON file in themes/. Drop one in while the app is running and it shows up in the switcher without a rebuild.

Adventure

Alduin

Asciinema

Ayu

Catppuccin

Crush

Everforest

Fahrenheit

Flexoki

Gruvbox

Harper

High Contrast Dark

High Contrast Light

Hybrid

Jellybeans

Kibble

macOS Classic

Matrix

Mellifluous

Molokai

Solarized

Spaceduck

Tokyo Night

Twilight

The unglamorous half

The parts nobody wants to write twice.

None of this is a differentiator on its own. All of it is a week you don't spend.

Command launcher

features/command_palette.rs

Cmd+K opens a floating palette with fuzzy search across every registered action. Full keyboard navigation.

Undo / redo

services/undo_stack.rs

Command-pattern stack behind Cmd+Z / Cmd+Y. One trait to implement per action, works across any operation.

Crash reporting

services/crash_report.rs

Panic hooks capture stack traces and write structured reports to disk. Surface or upload them on next launch.

Telemetry

services/telemetry/

Three modes (disabled, local-only, remote) behind an explicit consent gate. You decide what leaves the machine.

Logging

services/logging.rs

File-based logging through tracing-appender, with env-filter levels wired to the same config.

Accessibility

services/accessibility.rs

AccessKit integration so the tree is exposed to VoiceOver, Narrator and Orca.

Secure storage

services/secure_storage.rs

OS keyring for secrets: macOS Keychain, Windows Credential Manager, Linux Secret Service.

Deep links

platform/ipc/

URL-scheme handling forwarded through the single-instance guard, so a link reaches the running window.

Lifecycle

services/first_run.rs

Startup, shutdown and crash state machine, including first-run detection for onboarding.

Connectivity

services/connectivity.rs

Online/offline awareness so async work can back off instead of piling up retries.

Background tasks

services/tasks.rs

A task registry over the tokio runtime, cancelled cleanly on shutdown.

Error surface

services/error_surface.rs

One place errors are collected and rendered, instead of unwrap() scattered through the UI.

Comparison

What you get on day one.

Capability	gpui-starter	bare GPUI	Tauri	Electron
Native GPU rendering	✓	✓	webview	webview
Sidebar + page routing	✓	—	—	—
Theme system, hot-reload	24 built in	—	CSS	CSS
i18n with typed keys	✓ Fluent	—	plugin	library
Command launcher (Cmd+K)	✓	—	—	—
Signed auto-updater	✓ ed25519	—	✓	✓
Keyring / secure storage	✓	—	plugin	plugin
Crash reports + diagnostics	✓	—	—	✓
Screen reader support	✓ AccessKit	manual	✓	✓
Ships a browser engine	no	no	system	bundled

Documentation

Three places to look things up.

The docs explain how each subsystem is configured. The blog works through longer builds end to end. The FAQ answers the things people ask before they clone anything.

Docs

Lifecycle, entities, themes, i18n, tray, updater. What each subsystem is and how to configure it.

Getting started
Architecture
Routing

Read the docs

Blog

Procedural walkthroughs and framework comparisons. Title, context, code, command, done.

Build a custom title bar
keyring for credentials
CI/CD for desktop builds

Browse articles

FAQ

The questions that come up before the first build. One answer each, no preamble.

Q What is GPUI?
Q Supported platforms
Q Adding themes

Browse questions

Latest

From the blog.

All articles

LatestJune 5, 2026

Building a desktop chat application with Rust and GPUI

Architecture for a desktop chat app in Rust: WebSocket connections, message persistence with SQLite, and real-time UI updates using GPUI entities and context.

Read the article

Stop rewriting the shell.

Clone it, delete what you don't need, and spend the week on your product instead of the update manifest.

$cargo run

Read the docs Clone on GitHub

One repo for the whole desktop app.

Four subsystems,designed together.

App shell

Persistence

OS integration

gpui-query

Six pages, already wired.

Home

Form

Settings

About

Diagnostics

Notifications

The shell you get on the first run.

One binary, start to ship.

What ships in the box.

Real APIs, not a feature checklist.

Page routing

Theme system

Fluent i18n

Forms & validation

gpui-query

Notifications

24 themes, hot-reloaded.

The parts nobody wants to write twice.

Command launcher

Undo / redo

Crash reporting

Telemetry

Logging

Accessibility

Secure storage

Deep links

Lifecycle

Connectivity

Background tasks

Error surface

What you get on day one.

Three places to look things up.

Docs

Blog

FAQ

From the blog.

Building a desktop chat application with Rust and GPUI

Stop rewriting the shell.

Four subsystems,
designed together.