Mend SAST 2026: AI-Native Agentic Code Scanning

Mend SAST is an AI-native SAST tool designed for modern development workflows, including teams using AI coding assistants. It scans 30+ languages with dual-phase analysis — fast IDE feedback during development and deep cross-file scanning in CI/CD.

Agentic SAST

Secures AI-generated code in Cursor, Windsurf, GitHub Copilot, Claude Code, and Amazon Q Developer via the Mend MCP server. Scans code as AI agents generate it.

Dual-Phase Scanning

Fast scan in the IDE provides sub-second feedback. Deep scan in CI/CD performs cross-file data flow analysis. Both phases work together.

AI-Powered Fixes

When vulnerabilities are found, Mend generates context-aware fix suggestions using AI models. Mend claims these fixes are 46% more accurate than competitor offerings.

Mend SAST security dashboard showing vulnerability analytics across SCA, SAST, and container scans

What is Mend SAST?

Mend SAST takes a different approach from traditional SAST tools. Instead of running long scans against full codebases, it operates in two phases. The fast phase runs in your IDE and during code generation, returning results in sub-second time. The deep phase runs in CI/CD and performs comprehensive cross-file data flow tracking.

The “Agentic SAST” capability is the differentiator. As developers use AI coding assistants (Copilot, Cursor, Windsurf, Claude Code, Amazon Q), Mend’s MCP server integrates directly with these tools to scan generated code before it commits. The MCP server provides two assistants: mend-code-security-assistant for SAST and mend-dependencies-assistant for SCA.

Mend claims 38% better precision and 48% better recall versus traditional SAST tools, based on their benchmarks. These are vendor-published numbers — independent benchmarks are not available.

Key features

Reachability analysis

Mend SAST data flow analysis showing tainted data paths with file locations and code snippets

Not all detected vulnerabilities are equally exploitable. Mend performs reachability analysis to determine whether vulnerable code paths are actually exercised in your application. This filtering helps teams focus on issues that matter rather than theoretical findings.

Unified platform

Mend SAST works alongside Mend SCA, DAST, and container security. Findings from all tools correlate in a single dashboard, identifying high-priority issues where multiple vulnerability types compound risk.

IDE and agentic IDE integration

Mend provides extensions for VS Code, IntelliJ IDEA, and Visual Studio. For agentic IDEs, the Mend MCP server integrates with Cursor, Windsurf, GitHub Copilot, Claude Code, and Amazon Q Developer.

Benchmark claims

Mend publishes performance claims including “38% better precision,” “48% better recall,” and “46% more accurate AI fixes” versus competitors. These come from Mend’s internal benchmarks. Independent third-party validation of these numbers is not publicly available.

Getting started

Contact Mend — Mend SAST is commercial software. Request a demo at mend.io.

Install IDE extension — Add the Mend extension to VS Code, IntelliJ, or your agentic IDE. For Cursor and Windsurf, configure the Mend MCP server in settings.

Connect CI/CD — Integrate Mend into your pipeline. The platform supports GitHub, GitLab, Azure DevOps, and other CI/CD systems.

Configure policies — Set severity thresholds, enable reachability filtering, and connect with Mend SCA for unified first-party and third-party vulnerability management.

When to use Mend SAST

Mend SAST fits teams that are heavily using AI coding assistants and want security scanning embedded directly in the code generation workflow. The MCP server integration with Cursor, Windsurf, and Copilot is a capability that most SAST tools don’t offer yet.

Teams already using Mend SCA benefit from the unified platform. For teams that don’t use AI coding assistants or want open-source SAST, Semgrep or SonarQube may be better starting points.

Best for

Teams using AI coding assistants (Cursor, Windsurf, Copilot) that want real-time security scanning of AI-generated code, plus unified SAST and SCA on one platform.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Mend SAST?

Mend SAST is an AI-native static analysis tool that scans 30+ languages for security vulnerabilities. It provides dual-phase scanning: fast feedback in IDEs during development and deep analysis in CI/CD pipelines. The Agentic SAST feature secures AI-generated code in tools like Cursor, Windsurf, Copilot, and Claude Code via an MCP server.

Is Mend SAST free?

No. Mend SAST is a commercial product. Contact Mend.io for pricing. It integrates with the broader Mend platform that also includes SCA, DAST, and container security.

What is Agentic SAST?

Agentic SAST is Mend’s approach to securing AI-generated code. It integrates with agentic IDEs like Cursor, Windsurf, GitHub Copilot, Claude Code, and Amazon Q Developer via the Mend MCP server. When AI agents generate code, Mend automatically scans it for vulnerabilities in real time before it enters the repository.

How does Mend SAST compare to traditional SAST tools?

Mend claims 38% better precision and 48% better recall compared to traditional SAST tools based on their benchmarks. The dual-phase approach provides sub-second IDE feedback plus deeper cross-file analysis in CI/CD. AI-powered remediation generates fix suggestions that Mend says are 46% more accurate than competitors.