Twenty
Twenty 2.53 lets apps lock field permission actions, a day after role-aware relation pickers.
A side-by-side editorial comparison of Folk and Twenty — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.
Folk launched an MCP server and a mobile app in the same summer — two distinct distribution bets at once.
Folk shipped MCP integration twice in this window: the original Meet folk MCP in July (connecting CRM data to AI assistants) and a follow-on folk MCP feature that turns interaction history into AI-queryable insights. The mobile app launch — Contacts by folk — with talk-to-text and a business card scanner positions folk as a capture tool in the field, not just a desktop CRM. The Interactions API beta opens the data layer to external builders.
Twenty 2.52 lets apps run their own account-connection flows and adds inbox sharing.
Twenty 2.52.0 has a breaking change: apps can now connect accounts through their own authorization flow, and members manage personal app connections from preferences. The release also adds inbox thread sharing, global chat commands, email approval review, and weekly AI credits shown in chat. Much of the rest rebuilds record-form editing for emails, phones, links, files and addresses, and brings back table and toggle controls lost in 2.51's TipTap switch.
Folk shipped MCP integration twice in this window: the original Meet folk MCP in July (connecting CRM data to AI assistants) and a follow-on folk MCP feature that turns interaction history into AI-queryable insights. The mobile app launch — Contacts by folk — with talk-to-text and a business card scanner positions folk as a capture tool in the field, not just a desktop CRM. The Interactions API beta opens the data layer to external builders.
Folk is building a CRM designed for AI-native workflows: MCP for AI assistant connectivity, talk-to-text for frictionless capture, and the Interactions API for developers who want to build on top of the sales data. The Auto-fill AI (April) and MCP launches together suggest folk is positioning as the CRM that does the data work automatically rather than requiring manual entry.
The Interactions API graduating from beta — with full read/write access to CRM data — would enable folk to power third-party AI sales tools and outbound automation workflows, expanding beyond the native product.
Twenty 2.52.0 has a breaking change: apps can now connect accounts through their own authorization flow, and members manage personal app connections from preferences. The release also adds inbox thread sharing, global chat commands, email approval review, and weekly AI credits shown in chat. Much of the rest rebuilds record-form editing for emails, phones, links, files and addresses, and brings back table and toggle controls lost in 2.51's TipTap switch.
Twenty is pushing its app platform outward: third-party apps now own their auth and channels, and SDK packages ship in lockstep with core. Alongside it, the product is building a shared inbox and an AI chat with metered credits and human approval steps. The editor and form work shows a team still paying down 2.51's TipTap migration.
Expect a 2.52.x patch round for the new connection flow and record-form bricks, and more approval-gated AI actions in chat. Removal of the deprecated blocknote sub-field is still pending.
Other CRM 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 Folk or Twenty.
Twenty 2.53 lets apps lock field permission actions, a day after role-aware relation pickers.
IntegCRM keeps building out invoicing, bookings, forms and email for service businesses.
folk ships a French interface weeks after moving its data storage to Europe.
GroupOffice patches its current 26.0 line and the older 25.0 line on the same afternoon.
Close takes Chloe Chat out of beta for every customer, a month after OIDC SSO.
Corteza 2026.9.0 goes final after a week of single-fix candidates.
Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.
They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. Folk is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 6.3 vs 5.0), 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.
Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. Folk is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 6.3 vs 5.0), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other CRM products to evaluate alongside.
Top Folk alternatives in CRM are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Folk alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/folk for the full list with editorial commentary on each.
Top Twenty alternatives in CRM are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Twenty alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/twenty for the full list with editorial commentary on each.