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Pathmode vs. Tessl

Tessl is for the agent. Pathmode is for the product team that guides the agent.

See Full Comparison Matrix

Tessl

AI-Native Development Platform

Spec-Driven Development for autonomous coding.

Pathmode

Intent Engineering Platform

Compile user friction into structured specs for your team and your agents.

Feature Comparison

Feature	Pathmode	Tessl
Core Philosophy	User Intent (The "Why")	Code Specs (The "How")
Source of Truth	User evidence & friction	Engineering specs (OpenAPI/Tessl)
Primary User	PMs, Designers & Engineers	Devs & AI agents
Output	IntentSpec (Strategy + Context)	Usage Spec (Implementation)
Context Layer	Evidence Board + Constitution	Spec file per feature
Workflow	Top-Down (Friction → Intent → Code)	Bottom-Up (Dev Tools)

The Key Difference

Tessl — Spec-Driven Development for autonomous coding.

Limitation: Engineering-focused. Assumes specs exist or are written by devs. Misses the upstream 'User Friction → Intent' connection.

Pathmode — Compile user evidence into structured IntentSpecs, deliver context to AI agents via MCP, and verify real-world impact when features ship.

Why Teams Switch to Pathmode

Don't just build the spec right; build the right spec.
Start from user friction, not just technical definitions.
Give your whole team control over what the agent builds.
Connect the "Why" (user evidence) to the "How" (agent execution).

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Ready to switch from Tessl?

See why product teams choose Pathmode for intent engineering.

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