NetBird
NetBird's v0.81 reaches rc.3 with nothing left but cleanup.
Comparison · Infra & APIs
authentik vs Helm
A side-by-side editorial comparison of authentik and Helm — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.
authentik vs Helm: at a glance
What is authentik?
authentik spends its post-2026.8 cycle hardening the proxy and SCIM paths the Agent release leaned on.
authentik is four patches into the 2026.8 line, and 2026.8.4 is the largest yet: two dozen fixes concentrated in the proxy outpost, SCIM provisioning, and endpoint device lookup. The 2026.5 and 2026.2 branches are still receiving backports, so three release lines are live at once. No new capability has shipped since the 2026.8.0 Agent and Actors release in August.
What is Helm?
Helm 4 takes patches while Helm 3 winds down
Helm runs two trains: Helm 3.22.0 was the last Helm 3 minor, and Helm 4 carries active development. 4.3.0 brought concurrent status computation, ownership checks before uninstall and reproducible chart archives. 4.3.1 is a small patch that waits for CRDs to be established under the hook-only strategy.
authentik vs Helm: editorial side-by-side
authentik
5.0INFRA · APIS
authentik spends its post-2026.8 cycle hardening the proxy and SCIM paths the Agent release leaned on.
◆ Current state
authentik is four patches into the 2026.8 line, and 2026.8.4 is the largest yet: two dozen fixes concentrated in the proxy outpost, SCIM provisioning, and endpoint device lookup. The 2026.5 and 2026.2 branches are still receiving backports, so three release lines are live at once. No new capability has shipped since the 2026.8.0 Agent and Actors release in August.
◆ Where it's heading
The fix pattern follows the surface 2026.8.0 opened: endpoint fact snapshots, device lookup, and machine-facing proxy behaviour are where the bugs are landing. SCIM conflict resolution and remote error reporting suggest provisioning into downstream apps is getting real production load. The project is consolidating the device-identity bet rather than extending it yet.
◆ Prediction
The entries do not show a 2026.9 or 2026.11 feature branch in release form yet, so the next visible move is likely another 2026.8.x patch; whether the Agent gains new capabilities in the next major is not clear from these notes.
Helm
2.5INFRA · APIS
Helm 4 takes patches while Helm 3 winds down
◆ Current state
Helm runs two trains: Helm 3.22.0 was the last Helm 3 minor, and Helm 4 carries active development. 4.3.0 brought concurrent status computation, ownership checks before uninstall and reproducible chart archives. 4.3.1 is a small patch that waits for CRDs to be established under the hook-only strategy.
◆ Where it's heading
Helm 4 is putting its effort into correctness for GitOps and CI pipelines at scale: uninstall safety, status speed, CRD ordering. Helm 3 is in patch-only mode, and its releases now mostly carry dependency and security bumps.
◆ Prediction
Expect further 4.3.x patches focused on install and upgrade ordering edge cases, and only security or dependency patches on the 3.22 line. Feature work will likely wait for the next Helm 4 minor.
Alternatives to authentik and Helm
Other Infra & APIs products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either authentik or Helm.
Tolgee
Tolgee adds task-aware filters as editor gains and billing plumbing alternate.
Kubernetes
Kubernetes turns its memory and scheduling primitives into operator playbooks.
Indent
Indent is turning a chat assistant into a multi-model agent that works inside your other tools.
Kestra
Kestra's first tracked release drops Bootstrap from its UI design system.
Semgrep
Semgrep stops dropping unpinned Python deps from its inventory
See all authentik alternatives → · See all Helm alternatives →
Recent activity from authentik and Helm
Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.
- 12h agoHelmHelm 4.3.1 waits for CRDs under hook-only strategy
- 14h agoauthentikRelease 2026.8.4
- 27d agoauthentik2026.8.3: Case-insensitive file search, search autocomplete, and blueprint fix
- 1mo agoHelmHelm 3.22.0: final minor release, deps and k8s-io 0.37.0
- 1mo agoHelmHelm 4.3.0: concurrent status, uninstall safety, reproducible archives
- 1mo agoauthentikRelease 2026.8.2
- 1mo agoauthentik2026.5.7: Backport CI and endpoint auth schema fixes
- 1mo agoauthentik2026.2.7: Container hardening and policy filter backport
- 1mo agoauthentikRelease 2026.8.1
- 1mo agoHelmHelm 3.22.0 RC1: staging candidate for final v3 minor
- 1mo agoHelmHelm 4.3.0 RC1: staging candidate for 4.3 feature release
- 2mo agoHelmHelm 4.2.4: values file boundary fix, SSA retry, security patches
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between authentik and Helm?
They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. authentik is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 5.0 vs 2.5), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.
Is authentik better than Helm?
Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. authentik is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 5.0 vs 2.5), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other Infra & APIs products to evaluate alongside.
What are the best alternatives to authentik?
Top authentik alternatives in Infra & APIs are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "authentik alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/authentik for the full list with editorial commentary on each.
What are the best alternatives to Helm?
Top Helm alternatives in Infra & APIs are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Helm alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/helm for the full list with editorial commentary on each.