Everything Shipstar makes starts in GitHub. Every changelog, release note, blog post, and social thread is generated from the commits your team actually shipped — no commits, no content. So the way Shipstar connects to your repositories isn't a detail; it's the foundation the whole product stands on.
Today that foundation gets an upgrade. Shipstar is now available as a GitHub App: install it once on your organization (or personal account), choose the repositories it may read, and it shows up under Installed GitHub Apps next to the rest of your tooling. Read-only access, short-lived tokens, and an uninstall button that lives on GitHub, not with us.
Why a GitHub App?
Until now, connecting a repository meant authorizing Shipstar through a personal OAuth token. That works, but it has the shape of a personal favor rather than an organizational decision:
- It belongs to a person. The connection rides on whoever clicked "Connect." When they change roles or leave, the source quietly breaks.
- It's broader than it needs to be. A user token grants access to everything that user can see, not just the two repositories you care about.
- It's invisible to admins. Nothing appears in the organization's settings, so there's no single place to audit or revoke it.
A GitHub App fixes all three. The installation belongs to the organization, the scope is exactly the repositories an admin selected, and it's managed from the same screen as every other app your org has installed.
What the App can (and can't) do
We asked GitHub for the smallest permission set that lets Shipstar do its job:
| Permission | Access | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Repository metadata | Read-only | List the repositories in the installation |
| Repository contents | Read-only | Read commit history for the repositories you track |
That's the entire list. Shipstar can't write to your repositories, open pull requests, touch issues, or see anything outside the installation. It subscribes to just two webhook events — installation and installation_repositories — so it knows when you add or remove a repository, suspend the app, or uninstall it. Commit fetching stays pull-based, on your schedule.
Instead of storing a personal access token, Shipstar mints a short-lived installation token each time it needs to talk to GitHub. Tokens expire on their own, and there's no long-lived credential sitting in our database with your name on it.
Control stays on GitHub
Because the App is managed by GitHub, so is the off switch. Everything you'd expect to work from your organization's settings does:
- Remove a repository from the installation and Shipstar stops tracking it immediately, including any schedules that were pointed at it.
- Suspend the app and content generation pauses — the Sources page shows a banner with a link back to GitHub until you unsuspend.
- Uninstall and the connection is gone. No support ticket, no waiting on us.
We also only link an installation to a Shipstar project after GitHub confirms you actually have access to it — either through the authorization step in the install flow, or because you signed in to Shipstar with the same GitHub account that installed it. An installation ID in a URL is never enough on its own.
One install, many projects
A single installation can serve several Shipstar projects on the same organization. Install once at the org level, then let each project pick the repositories it tracks from inside the installation. Every generation run — and every schedule — can still be scoped to a single repository, so a platform team and a mobile team can share one install and never see each other's commits in their drafts.
Getting started
There are two ways in, and they end up in the same place.
From the dashboard
Go to Sources → Install GitHub App. GitHub asks which organization to install on and which repositories Shipstar may read; when you come back, the installation is already linked to your project and the Repos tab lists exactly what you granted. Pick the repositories to track and generate your first draft.
From GitHub
Install directly from github.com/apps/shipstar-ai. After the install, GitHub sends you to a short finish-setup page on shipstar.ai; sign in (with GitHub is fastest — it links automatically) and claim the installation for your project.
Not an org admin? Request the install from the same GitHub screen. An admin approves it, and the installation appears as claimable on your Sources page the next time you open it.
Already connected? Upgrade in one click
Existing OAuth connections keep working — nothing breaks today. But the Sources page now offers Upgrade to GitHub App. It takes you through the same install screen, then converts your connection in place: tracked repositories carry over (minus any you didn't include in the installation), your schedules are re-pointed, and your personal token is dropped. We'd recommend doing it the next time you're in the dashboard.
What's next
GitHub is where Shipstar starts, and this release makes that starting point something an engineering org can adopt with a straight face: least-privilege, auditable, and reversible from a screen you already own. A GitHub Marketplace listing is on the way, which will make discovery and installation even easier.
If you haven't tried Shipstar yet, create a free account, install the App, and your first changelog is a couple of minutes away. If you have — go hit that upgrade button.