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Issy – AI-native issue tracking stored as Markdown files in your repo

Issy – AI-native issue tracking stored as Markdown files in your repo

by miketromba·Feb 13, 2026·1 point·0 comments
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AI Analysis

●●SolidShip ItSolve My Problem

Git-native issues AI agents can manage, but GitHub Issues + MCP already solve this better.

Strengths
  • •Zero infrastructure: markdown files in `.issues/` travel with branches, visible in PRs and diffs
  • •Cursor skill integration teaches AI agents the format without repeated prompting
  • •Genuinely local-first: works offline, no API keys, no vendor lock-in
Weaknesses
  • •GitHub Issues + MCP servers + Claude's native file editing already handle this; no clear advantage over existing workflows
  • •No search/filtering UI beyond fuzzy search; lacks views, milestones, or cross-repo issue linking that teams expect
Target Audience

Developers using AI coding assistants (Claude, Cursor, Cline); teams preferring git-native workflows over external trackers

Similar To

GitHub Issues · Linear · Plane

Post Description

Hey HN, I built issy, a lightweight issue tracker that stores issues as markdown files in a `.issues/` directory in your repo.

The idea is simple: issues should live with your code. They show up in diffs, travel with branches, and don't require accounts, databases, or external services. They're just markdown files with YAML frontmatter.

It's built for AI coding assistants. You can tell Cursor/Claude/Codex (or any AI agent) things like "create a bug for the login redirect issue, high priority" and it handles the rest — creating, searching, updating, and closing issues through natural language. There's a Cursor skill you can install with `npx skills add miketromba/issy`.

It also comes with a CLI for filtering/searching and a local web UI at localhost:1554 for when you want a visual overview.

Key points: - Zero infrastructure — no DB, no accounts, no SaaS - Issues are git-native — visible in PRs, blame-able, branch-able - Fuzzy search with typo tolerance - Monorepo-aware (walks up the directory tree to find .issues/) - Works offline

Blog Post: https://mike.gg/issy

GitHub: https://github.com/miketromba/issy

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