Zed Code Editor Cheat Sheet

Zed is a high-performance code editor built in Rust with GPU-accelerated UI rendering via the GPUI framework, designed for native speed, real-time multiplayer collaboration, and seamless AI integration. Developed by the creators of Atom and Tree-sitter, Zed runs on macOS, Linux, and Windows, offering sub-second startup times and minimal memory usage. The editor emphasizes developer productivity through built-in language server protocol support, integrated Git workflows, and first-class collaborative features like channels and multiplayer editing, enabling teams to work together in shared workspaces with near-zero latency. Understanding that Zed treats performance and collaboration as core design principles—not bolted-on features—helps explain why it achieves 2x faster startup and 16x lower memory usage compared to Electron-based editors while simultaneously supporting real-time pair programming, AI-powered edit predictions, and agentic workflows that run at editor speed rather than network speed.