diff --git a/goldens/public-api/angular_devkit/build_angular/index.api.md b/goldens/public-api/angular_devkit/build_angular/index.api.md
index 0bb4e6a36bb3..25256458b6bd 100644
--- a/goldens/public-api/angular_devkit/build_angular/index.api.md
+++ b/goldens/public-api/angular_devkit/build_angular/index.api.md
@@ -213,6 +213,7 @@ export interface FileReplacement {
 export interface KarmaBuilderOptions {
     assets?: AssetPattern_2[];
     browsers?: Browsers;
+    builderMode?: BuilderMode;
     codeCoverage?: boolean;
     codeCoverageExclude?: string[];
     exclude?: string[];
diff --git a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/application_builder.ts b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/application_builder.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..cf67f76be5e3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/application_builder.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,297 @@
+/**
+ * @license
+ * Copyright Google LLC All Rights Reserved.
+ *
+ * Use of this source code is governed by an MIT-style license that can be
+ * found in the LICENSE file at https://angular.dev/license
+ */
+
+import { BuildOutputFileType } from '@angular/build';
+import {
+  ResultFile,
+  ResultKind,
+  buildApplicationInternal,
+  emitFilesToDisk,
+  purgeStaleBuildCache,
+} from '@angular/build/private';
+import { BuilderContext, BuilderOutput } from '@angular-devkit/architect';
+import { randomUUID } from 'crypto';
+import * as fs from 'fs/promises';
+import type { Config, ConfigOptions, InlinePluginDef } from 'karma';
+import * as path from 'path';
+import { Observable, catchError, defaultIfEmpty, from, of, switchMap } from 'rxjs';
+import { Configuration } from 'webpack';
+import { ExecutionTransformer } from '../../transforms';
+import { readTsconfig } from '../../utils/read-tsconfig';
+import { OutputHashing } from '../browser-esbuild/schema';
+import { findTests } from './find-tests';
+import { Schema as KarmaBuilderOptions } from './schema';
+
+class ApplicationBuildError extends Error {
+  constructor(message: string) {
+    super(message);
+    this.name = 'ApplicationBuildError';
+  }
+}
+
+export function execute(
+  options: KarmaBuilderOptions,
+  context: BuilderContext,
+  karmaOptions: ConfigOptions,
+  transforms: {
+    webpackConfiguration?: ExecutionTransformer<Configuration>;
+    // The karma options transform cannot be async without a refactor of the builder implementation
+    karmaOptions?: (options: ConfigOptions) => ConfigOptions;
+  } = {},
+): Observable<BuilderOutput> {
+  return from(initializeApplication(options, context, karmaOptions, transforms)).pipe(
+    switchMap(
+      ([karma, karmaConfig]) =>
+        new Observable<BuilderOutput>((subscriber) => {
+          // Complete the observable once the Karma server returns.
+          const karmaServer = new karma.Server(karmaConfig as Config, (exitCode) => {
+            subscriber.next({ success: exitCode === 0 });
+            subscriber.complete();
+          });
+
+          const karmaStart = karmaServer.start();
+
+          // Cleanup, signal Karma to exit.
+          return () => {
+            void karmaStart.then(() => karmaServer.stop());
+          };
+        }),
+    ),
+    catchError((err) => {
+      if (err instanceof ApplicationBuildError) {
+        return of({ success: false, message: err.message });
+      }
+
+      throw err;
+    }),
+    defaultIfEmpty({ success: false }),
+  );
+}
+
+async function getProjectSourceRoot(context: BuilderContext): Promise<string> {
+  // We have already validated that the project name is set before calling this function.
+  const projectName = context.target?.project;
+  if (!projectName) {
+    return context.workspaceRoot;
+  }
+
+  const projectMetadata = await context.getProjectMetadata(projectName);
+  const sourceRoot = (projectMetadata.sourceRoot ?? projectMetadata.root ?? '') as string;
+
+  return path.join(context.workspaceRoot, sourceRoot);
+}
+
+async function collectEntrypoints(
+  options: KarmaBuilderOptions,
+  context: BuilderContext,
+): Promise<[Set<string>, string[]]> {
+  const projectSourceRoot = await getProjectSourceRoot(context);
+
+  // Glob for files to test.
+  const testFiles = await findTests(
+    options.include ?? [],
+    options.exclude ?? [],
+    context.workspaceRoot,
+    projectSourceRoot,
+  );
+
+  const entryPoints = new Set([
+    ...testFiles,
+    '@angular-devkit/build-angular/src/builders/karma/init_test_bed.js',
+  ]);
+  // Extract `zone.js/testing` to a separate entry point because it needs to be loaded after Jasmine.
+  const [polyfills, hasZoneTesting] = extractZoneTesting(options.polyfills);
+  if (hasZoneTesting) {
+    entryPoints.add('zone.js/testing');
+  }
+
+  const tsConfigPath = path.resolve(context.workspaceRoot, options.tsConfig);
+  const tsConfig = await readTsconfig(tsConfigPath);
+
+  const localizePackageInitEntryPoint = '@angular/localize/init';
+  const hasLocalizeType = tsConfig.options.types?.some(
+    (t) => t === '@angular/localize' || t === localizePackageInitEntryPoint,
+  );
+
+  if (hasLocalizeType) {
+    polyfills.push(localizePackageInitEntryPoint);
+  }
+
+  return [entryPoints, polyfills];
+}
+
+async function initializeApplication(
+  options: KarmaBuilderOptions,
+  context: BuilderContext,
+  karmaOptions: ConfigOptions,
+  transforms: {
+    webpackConfiguration?: ExecutionTransformer<Configuration>;
+    karmaOptions?: (options: ConfigOptions) => ConfigOptions;
+  } = {},
+): Promise<[typeof import('karma'), Config & ConfigOptions]> {
+  if (transforms.webpackConfiguration) {
+    context.logger.warn(
+      `This build is using the application builder but transforms.webpackConfiguration was provided. The transform will be ignored.`,
+    );
+  }
+
+  const testDir = path.join(context.workspaceRoot, 'dist/test-out', randomUUID());
+
+  const [karma, [entryPoints, polyfills]] = await Promise.all([
+    import('karma'),
+    collectEntrypoints(options, context),
+    fs.rm(testDir, { recursive: true, force: true }),
+  ]);
+
+  const outputPath = testDir;
+
+  // Build tests with `application` builder, using test files as entry points.
+  const buildOutput = await first(
+    buildApplicationInternal(
+      {
+        entryPoints,
+        tsConfig: options.tsConfig,
+        outputPath,
+        aot: false,
+        index: false,
+        outputHashing: OutputHashing.None,
+        optimization: false,
+        sourceMap: {
+          scripts: true,
+          styles: true,
+          vendor: true,
+        },
+        styles: options.styles,
+        polyfills,
+        webWorkerTsConfig: options.webWorkerTsConfig,
+      },
+      context,
+    ),
+  );
+  if (buildOutput.kind === ResultKind.Failure) {
+    throw new ApplicationBuildError('Build failed');
+  } else if (buildOutput.kind !== ResultKind.Full) {
+    throw new ApplicationBuildError(
+      'A full build result is required from the application builder.',
+    );
+  }
+
+  // Write test files
+  await writeTestFiles(buildOutput.files, testDir);
+
+  karmaOptions.files ??= [];
+  karmaOptions.files.push(
+    // Serve polyfills first.
+    { pattern: `${testDir}/polyfills.js`, type: 'module' },
+    // Allow loading of chunk-* files but don't include them all on load.
+    { pattern: `${testDir}/chunk-*.js`, type: 'module', included: false },
+    // Allow loading of worker-* files but don't include them all on load.
+    { pattern: `${testDir}/worker-*.js`, type: 'module', included: false },
+    // `zone.js/testing`, served but not included on page load.
+    { pattern: `${testDir}/testing.js`, type: 'module', included: false },
+    // Serve remaining JS on page load, these are the test entrypoints.
+    { pattern: `${testDir}/*.js`, type: 'module' },
+  );
+
+  if (options.styles?.length) {
+    // Serve CSS outputs on page load, these are the global styles.
+    karmaOptions.files.push({ pattern: `${testDir}/*.css`, type: 'css' });
+  }
+
+  const parsedKarmaConfig: Config & ConfigOptions = await karma.config.parseConfig(
+    options.karmaConfig && path.resolve(context.workspaceRoot, options.karmaConfig),
+    transforms.karmaOptions ? transforms.karmaOptions(karmaOptions) : karmaOptions,
+    { promiseConfig: true, throwErrors: true },
+  );
+
+  // Remove the webpack plugin/framework:
+  // Alternative would be to make the Karma plugin "smart" but that's a tall order
+  // with managing unneeded imports etc..
+  const pluginLengthBefore = (parsedKarmaConfig.plugins ?? []).length;
+  parsedKarmaConfig.plugins = (parsedKarmaConfig.plugins ?? []).filter(
+    (plugin: string | InlinePluginDef) => {
+      if (typeof plugin === 'string') {
+        return plugin !== 'framework:@angular-devkit/build-angular';
+      }
+
+      return !plugin['framework:@angular-devkit/build-angular'];
+    },
+  );
+  parsedKarmaConfig.frameworks = parsedKarmaConfig.frameworks?.filter(
+    (framework: string) => framework !== '@angular-devkit/build-angular',
+  );
+  const pluginLengthAfter = (parsedKarmaConfig.plugins ?? []).length;
+  if (pluginLengthBefore !== pluginLengthAfter) {
+    context.logger.warn(
+      `Ignoring framework "@angular-devkit/build-angular" from karma config file because it's not compatible with the application builder.`,
+    );
+  }
+
+  // When using code-coverage, auto-add karma-coverage.
+  // This was done as part of the karma plugin for webpack.
+  if (
+    options.codeCoverage &&
+    !parsedKarmaConfig.reporters?.some((r: string) => r === 'coverage' || r === 'coverage-istanbul')
+  ) {
+    parsedKarmaConfig.reporters = (parsedKarmaConfig.reporters ?? []).concat(['coverage']);
+  }
+
+  return [karma, parsedKarmaConfig];
+}
+
+export async function writeTestFiles(files: Record<string, ResultFile>, testDir: string) {
+  const directoryExists = new Set<string>();
+  // Writes the test related output files to disk and ensures the containing directories are present
+  await emitFilesToDisk(Object.entries(files), async ([filePath, file]) => {
+    if (file.type !== BuildOutputFileType.Browser && file.type !== BuildOutputFileType.Media) {
+      return;
+    }
+
+    const fullFilePath = path.join(testDir, filePath);
+
+    // Ensure output subdirectories exist
+    const fileBasePath = path.dirname(fullFilePath);
+    if (fileBasePath && !directoryExists.has(fileBasePath)) {
+      await fs.mkdir(fileBasePath, { recursive: true });
+      directoryExists.add(fileBasePath);
+    }
+
+    if (file.origin === 'memory') {
+      // Write file contents
+      await fs.writeFile(fullFilePath, file.contents);
+    } else {
+      // Copy file contents
+      await fs.copyFile(file.inputPath, fullFilePath, fs.constants.COPYFILE_FICLONE);
+    }
+  });
+}
+
+function extractZoneTesting(
+  polyfills: readonly string[] | string | undefined,
+): [polyfills: string[], hasZoneTesting: boolean] {
+  if (typeof polyfills === 'string') {
+    polyfills = [polyfills];
+  }
+  polyfills ??= [];
+
+  const polyfillsWithoutZoneTesting = polyfills.filter(
+    (polyfill) => polyfill !== 'zone.js/testing',
+  );
+  const hasZoneTesting = polyfills.length !== polyfillsWithoutZoneTesting.length;
+
+  return [polyfillsWithoutZoneTesting, hasZoneTesting];
+}
+
+/** Returns the first item yielded by the given generator and cancels the execution. */
+async function first<T>(generator: AsyncIterable<T>): Promise<T> {
+  for await (const value of generator) {
+    return value;
+  }
+
+  throw new Error('Expected generator to emit at least once.');
+}
diff --git a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/browser_builder.ts b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/browser_builder.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..6abf78e1f68a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/browser_builder.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,170 @@
+/**
+ * @license
+ * Copyright Google LLC All Rights Reserved.
+ *
+ * Use of this source code is governed by an MIT-style license that can be
+ * found in the LICENSE file at https://angular.dev/license
+ */
+
+import { purgeStaleBuildCache } from '@angular/build/private';
+import { BuilderContext, BuilderOutput } from '@angular-devkit/architect';
+import type { Config, ConfigOptions } from 'karma';
+import * as path from 'path';
+import { Observable, defaultIfEmpty, from, switchMap } from 'rxjs';
+import { Configuration } from 'webpack';
+import { getCommonConfig, getStylesConfig } from '../../tools/webpack/configs';
+import { ExecutionTransformer } from '../../transforms';
+import { generateBrowserWebpackConfigFromContext } from '../../utils/webpack-browser-config';
+import { Schema as BrowserBuilderOptions, OutputHashing } from '../browser/schema';
+import { FindTestsPlugin } from './find-tests-plugin';
+import { Schema as KarmaBuilderOptions } from './schema';
+
+export type KarmaConfigOptions = ConfigOptions & {
+  buildWebpack?: unknown;
+  configFile?: string;
+};
+
+export function execute(
+  options: KarmaBuilderOptions,
+  context: BuilderContext,
+  karmaOptions: KarmaConfigOptions,
+  transforms: {
+    webpackConfiguration?: ExecutionTransformer<Configuration>;
+    // The karma options transform cannot be async without a refactor of the builder implementation
+    karmaOptions?: (options: KarmaConfigOptions) => KarmaConfigOptions;
+  } = {},
+): Observable<BuilderOutput> {
+  return from(initializeBrowser(options, context)).pipe(
+    switchMap(async ([karma, webpackConfig]) => {
+      const projectName = context.target?.project;
+      if (!projectName) {
+        throw new Error(`The 'karma' builder requires a target to be specified.`);
+      }
+
+      const projectMetadata = await context.getProjectMetadata(projectName);
+      const sourceRoot = (projectMetadata.sourceRoot ?? projectMetadata.root ?? '') as string;
+
+      if (!options.main) {
+        webpackConfig.entry ??= {};
+        if (typeof webpackConfig.entry === 'object' && !Array.isArray(webpackConfig.entry)) {
+          if (Array.isArray(webpackConfig.entry['main'])) {
+            webpackConfig.entry['main'].push(getBuiltInMainFile());
+          } else {
+            webpackConfig.entry['main'] = [getBuiltInMainFile()];
+          }
+        }
+      }
+
+      webpackConfig.plugins ??= [];
+      webpackConfig.plugins.push(
+        new FindTestsPlugin({
+          include: options.include,
+          exclude: options.exclude,
+          workspaceRoot: context.workspaceRoot,
+          projectSourceRoot: path.join(context.workspaceRoot, sourceRoot),
+        }),
+      );
+
+      karmaOptions.buildWebpack = {
+        options,
+        webpackConfig,
+        logger: context.logger,
+      };
+
+      const parsedKarmaConfig = await karma.config.parseConfig(
+        options.karmaConfig && path.resolve(context.workspaceRoot, options.karmaConfig),
+        transforms.karmaOptions ? transforms.karmaOptions(karmaOptions) : karmaOptions,
+        { promiseConfig: true, throwErrors: true },
+      );
+
+      return [karma, parsedKarmaConfig] as [typeof karma, KarmaConfigOptions];
+    }),
+    switchMap(
+      ([karma, karmaConfig]) =>
+        new Observable<BuilderOutput>((subscriber) => {
+          // Pass onto Karma to emit BuildEvents.
+          karmaConfig.buildWebpack ??= {};
+          if (typeof karmaConfig.buildWebpack === 'object') {
+            // eslint-disable-next-line @typescript-eslint/no-explicit-any
+            (karmaConfig.buildWebpack as any).failureCb ??= () =>
+              subscriber.next({ success: false });
+            // eslint-disable-next-line @typescript-eslint/no-explicit-any
+            (karmaConfig.buildWebpack as any).successCb ??= () =>
+              subscriber.next({ success: true });
+          }
+
+          // Complete the observable once the Karma server returns.
+          const karmaServer = new karma.Server(karmaConfig as Config, (exitCode) => {
+            subscriber.next({ success: exitCode === 0 });
+            subscriber.complete();
+          });
+
+          const karmaStart = karmaServer.start();
+
+          // Cleanup, signal Karma to exit.
+          return () => {
+            void karmaStart.then(() => karmaServer.stop());
+          };
+        }),
+    ),
+    defaultIfEmpty({ success: false }),
+  );
+}
+
+async function initializeBrowser(
+  options: KarmaBuilderOptions,
+  context: BuilderContext,
+  webpackConfigurationTransformer?: ExecutionTransformer<Configuration>,
+): Promise<[typeof import('karma'), Configuration]> {
+  // Purge old build disk cache.
+  await purgeStaleBuildCache(context);
+
+  const karma = await import('karma');
+
+  const { config } = await generateBrowserWebpackConfigFromContext(
+    // only two properties are missing:
+    // * `outputPath` which is fixed for tests
+    // * `budgets` which might be incorrect due to extra dev libs
+    {
+      ...(options as unknown as BrowserBuilderOptions),
+      outputPath: '',
+      budgets: undefined,
+      optimization: false,
+      buildOptimizer: false,
+      aot: false,
+      vendorChunk: true,
+      namedChunks: true,
+      extractLicenses: false,
+      outputHashing: OutputHashing.None,
+      // The webpack tier owns the watch behavior so we want to force it in the config.
+      // When not in watch mode, webpack-dev-middleware will call `compiler.watch` anyway.
+      // https://github.com/webpack/webpack-dev-middleware/blob/698c9ae5e9bb9a013985add6189ff21c1a1ec185/src/index.js#L65
+      // https://github.com/webpack/webpack/blob/cde1b73e12eb8a77eb9ba42e7920c9ec5d29c2c9/lib/Compiler.js#L379-L388
+      watch: true,
+    },
+    context,
+    (wco) => [getCommonConfig(wco), getStylesConfig(wco)],
+  );
+
+  return [karma, (await webpackConfigurationTransformer?.(config)) ?? config];
+}
+
+function getBuiltInMainFile(): string {
+  const content = Buffer.from(
+    `
+  import { getTestBed } from '@angular/core/testing';
+  import {
+    BrowserDynamicTestingModule,
+    platformBrowserDynamicTesting,
+   } from '@angular/platform-browser-dynamic/testing';
+
+  // Initialize the Angular testing environment.
+  getTestBed().initTestEnvironment(BrowserDynamicTestingModule, platformBrowserDynamicTesting(), {
+    errorOnUnknownElements: true,
+    errorOnUnknownProperties: true
+  });
+`,
+  ).toString('base64');
+
+  return `ng-virtual-main.js!=!data:text/javascript;base64,${content}`;
+}
diff --git a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/find-tests-plugin.ts b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/find-tests-plugin.ts
index 368168699107..0226d6e21694 100644
--- a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/find-tests-plugin.ts
+++ b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/find-tests-plugin.ts
@@ -7,12 +7,11 @@
  */
 
 import assert from 'assert';
-import glob, { isDynamicPattern } from 'fast-glob';
-import { PathLike, constants, promises as fs } from 'fs';
 import { pluginName } from 'mini-css-extract-plugin';
-import { basename, dirname, extname, join, relative } from 'path';
 import type { Compilation, Compiler } from 'webpack';
 
+import { findTests } from './find-tests';
+
 /**
  * The name of the plugin provided to Webpack when tapping Webpack compiler hooks.
  */
@@ -71,105 +70,3 @@ export class FindTestsPlugin {
     });
   }
 }
-
-// go through all patterns and find unique list of files
-async function findTests(
-  include: string[],
-  exclude: string[],
-  workspaceRoot: string,
-  projectSourceRoot: string,
-): Promise<string[]> {
-  const matchingTestsPromises = include.map((pattern) =>
-    findMatchingTests(pattern, exclude, workspaceRoot, projectSourceRoot),
-  );
-  const files = await Promise.all(matchingTestsPromises);
-
-  // Unique file names
-  return [...new Set(files.flat())];
-}
-
-const normalizePath = (path: string): string => path.replace(/\\/g, '/');
-
-const removeLeadingSlash = (pattern: string): string => {
-  if (pattern.charAt(0) === '/') {
-    return pattern.substring(1);
-  }
-
-  return pattern;
-};
-
-const removeRelativeRoot = (path: string, root: string): string => {
-  if (path.startsWith(root)) {
-    return path.substring(root.length);
-  }
-
-  return path;
-};
-
-async function findMatchingTests(
-  pattern: string,
-  ignore: string[],
-  workspaceRoot: string,
-  projectSourceRoot: string,
-): Promise<string[]> {
-  // normalize pattern, glob lib only accepts forward slashes
-  let normalizedPattern = normalizePath(pattern);
-  normalizedPattern = removeLeadingSlash(normalizedPattern);
-
-  const relativeProjectRoot = normalizePath(relative(workspaceRoot, projectSourceRoot) + '/');
-
-  // remove relativeProjectRoot to support relative paths from root
-  // such paths are easy to get when running scripts via IDEs
-  normalizedPattern = removeRelativeRoot(normalizedPattern, relativeProjectRoot);
-
-  // special logic when pattern does not look like a glob
-  if (!isDynamicPattern(normalizedPattern)) {
-    if (await isDirectory(join(projectSourceRoot, normalizedPattern))) {
-      normalizedPattern = `${normalizedPattern}/**/*.spec.@(ts|tsx)`;
-    } else {
-      // see if matching spec file exists
-      const fileExt = extname(normalizedPattern);
-      // Replace extension to `.spec.ext`. Example: `src/app/app.component.ts`-> `src/app/app.component.spec.ts`
-      const potentialSpec = join(
-        projectSourceRoot,
-        dirname(normalizedPattern),
-        `${basename(normalizedPattern, fileExt)}.spec${fileExt}`,
-      );
-
-      if (await exists(potentialSpec)) {
-        return [potentialSpec];
-      }
-    }
-  }
-
-  // normalize the patterns in the ignore list
-  const normalizedIgnorePatternList = ignore.map((pattern: string) =>
-    removeRelativeRoot(removeLeadingSlash(normalizePath(pattern)), relativeProjectRoot),
-  );
-
-  return glob(normalizedPattern, {
-    cwd: projectSourceRoot,
-    absolute: true,
-    ignore: ['**/node_modules/**', ...normalizedIgnorePatternList],
-  });
-}
-
-async function isDirectory(path: PathLike): Promise<boolean> {
-  try {
-    const stats = await fs.stat(path);
-
-    return stats.isDirectory();
-  } catch {
-    return false;
-  }
-}
-
-async function exists(path: PathLike): Promise<boolean> {
-  try {
-    await fs.access(path, constants.F_OK);
-
-    return true;
-  } catch {
-    return false;
-  }
-}
diff --git a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/find-tests.ts b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/find-tests.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..80571870e3b2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/find-tests.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,113 @@
+/**
+ * @license
+ * Copyright Google LLC All Rights Reserved.
+ *
+ * Use of this source code is governed by an MIT-style license that can be
+ * found in the LICENSE file at https://angular.dev/license
+ */
+
+import glob, { isDynamicPattern } from 'fast-glob';
+import { PathLike, constants, promises as fs } from 'fs';
+import { basename, dirname, extname, join, relative } from 'path';
+
+/* Go through all patterns and find unique list of files */
+export async function findTests(
+  include: string[],
+  exclude: string[],
+  workspaceRoot: string,
+  projectSourceRoot: string,
+): Promise<string[]> {
+  const matchingTestsPromises = include.map((pattern) =>
+    findMatchingTests(pattern, exclude, workspaceRoot, projectSourceRoot),
+  );
+  const files = await Promise.all(matchingTestsPromises);
+
+  // Unique file names
+  return [...new Set(files.flat())];
+}
+
+const normalizePath = (path: string): string => path.replace(/\\/g, '/');
+
+const removeLeadingSlash = (pattern: string): string => {
+  if (pattern.charAt(0) === '/') {
+    return pattern.substring(1);
+  }
+
+  return pattern;
+};
+
+const removeRelativeRoot = (path: string, root: string): string => {
+  if (path.startsWith(root)) {
+    return path.substring(root.length);
+  }
+
+  return path;
+};
+
+async function findMatchingTests(
+  pattern: string,
+  ignore: string[],
+  workspaceRoot: string,
+  projectSourceRoot: string,
+): Promise<string[]> {
+  // normalize pattern, glob lib only accepts forward slashes
+  let normalizedPattern = normalizePath(pattern);
+  normalizedPattern = removeLeadingSlash(normalizedPattern);
+
+  const relativeProjectRoot = normalizePath(relative(workspaceRoot, projectSourceRoot) + '/');
+
+  // remove relativeProjectRoot to support relative paths from root
+  // such paths are easy to get when running scripts via IDEs
+  normalizedPattern = removeRelativeRoot(normalizedPattern, relativeProjectRoot);
+
+  // special logic when pattern does not look like a glob
+  if (!isDynamicPattern(normalizedPattern)) {
+    if (await isDirectory(join(projectSourceRoot, normalizedPattern))) {
+      normalizedPattern = `${normalizedPattern}/**/*.spec.@(ts|tsx)`;
+    } else {
+      // see if matching spec file exists
+      const fileExt = extname(normalizedPattern);
+      // Replace extension to `.spec.ext`. Example: `src/app/app.component.ts`-> `src/app/app.component.spec.ts`
+      const potentialSpec = join(
+        projectSourceRoot,
+        dirname(normalizedPattern),
+        `${basename(normalizedPattern, fileExt)}.spec${fileExt}`,
+      );
+
+      if (await exists(potentialSpec)) {
+        return [potentialSpec];
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
+  // normalize the patterns in the ignore list
+  const normalizedIgnorePatternList = ignore.map((pattern: string) =>
+    removeRelativeRoot(removeLeadingSlash(normalizePath(pattern)), relativeProjectRoot),
+  );
+
+  return glob(normalizedPattern, {
+    cwd: projectSourceRoot,
+    absolute: true,
+    ignore: ['**/node_modules/**', ...normalizedIgnorePatternList],
+  });
+}
+
+async function isDirectory(path: PathLike): Promise<boolean> {
+  try {
+    const stats = await fs.stat(path);
+
+    return stats.isDirectory();
+  } catch {
+    return false;
+  }
+}
+
+async function exists(path: PathLike): Promise<boolean> {
+  try {
+    await fs.access(path, constants.F_OK);
+
+    return true;
+  } catch {
+    return false;
+  }
+}
diff --git a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/index.ts b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/index.ts
index d46dea4923b9..227117ffcf1c 100644
--- a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/index.ts
+++ b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/index.ts
@@ -6,64 +6,27 @@
  * found in the LICENSE file at https://angular.dev/license
  */
 
-import { assertCompatibleAngularVersion, purgeStaleBuildCache } from '@angular/build/private';
-import { BuilderContext, BuilderOutput, createBuilder } from '@angular-devkit/architect';
+import { assertCompatibleAngularVersion } from '@angular/build/private';
+import {
+  BuilderContext,
+  BuilderOutput,
+  createBuilder,
+  targetFromTargetString,
+} from '@angular-devkit/architect';
 import { strings } from '@angular-devkit/core';
-import type { Config, ConfigOptions } from 'karma';
+import type { ConfigOptions } from 'karma';
 import { createRequire } from 'module';
 import * as path from 'path';
-import { Observable, defaultIfEmpty, from, switchMap } from 'rxjs';
+import { Observable, from, mergeMap } from 'rxjs';
 import { Configuration } from 'webpack';
-import { getCommonConfig, getStylesConfig } from '../../tools/webpack/configs';
 import { ExecutionTransformer } from '../../transforms';
-import { generateBrowserWebpackConfigFromContext } from '../../utils/webpack-browser-config';
-import { Schema as BrowserBuilderOptions, OutputHashing } from '../browser/schema';
-import { FindTestsPlugin } from './find-tests-plugin';
-import { Schema as KarmaBuilderOptions } from './schema';
+import { BuilderMode, Schema as KarmaBuilderOptions } from './schema';
 
 export type KarmaConfigOptions = ConfigOptions & {
   buildWebpack?: unknown;
   configFile?: string;
 };
 
-async function initialize(
-  options: KarmaBuilderOptions,
-  context: BuilderContext,
-  webpackConfigurationTransformer?: ExecutionTransformer<Configuration>,
-): Promise<[typeof import('karma'), Configuration]> {
-  // Purge old build disk cache.
-  await purgeStaleBuildCache(context);
-
-  const { config } = await generateBrowserWebpackConfigFromContext(
-    // only two properties are missing:
-    // * `outputPath` which is fixed for tests
-    // * `budgets` which might be incorrect due to extra dev libs
-    {
-      ...(options as unknown as BrowserBuilderOptions),
-      outputPath: '',
-      budgets: undefined,
-      optimization: false,
-      buildOptimizer: false,
-      aot: false,
-      vendorChunk: true,
-      namedChunks: true,
-      extractLicenses: false,
-      outputHashing: OutputHashing.None,
-      // The webpack tier owns the watch behavior so we want to force it in the config.
-      // When not in watch mode, webpack-dev-middleware will call `compiler.watch` anyway.
-      // https://github.com/webpack/webpack-dev-middleware/blob/698c9ae5e9bb9a013985add6189ff21c1a1ec185/src/index.js#L65
-      // https://github.com/webpack/webpack/blob/cde1b73e12eb8a77eb9ba42e7920c9ec5d29c2c9/lib/Compiler.js#L379-L388
-      watch: true,
-    },
-    context,
-    (wco) => [getCommonConfig(wco), getStylesConfig(wco)],
-  );
-
-  const karma = await import('karma');
-
-  return [karma, (await webpackConfigurationTransformer?.(config)) ?? config];
-}
-
 /**
  * @experimental Direct usage of this function is considered experimental.
  */
@@ -79,122 +42,68 @@ export function execute(
   // Check Angular version.
   assertCompatibleAngularVersion(context.workspaceRoot);
 
+  return from(getExecuteWithBuilder(options, context)).pipe(
+    mergeMap(([useEsbuild, executeWithBuilder]) => {
+      const karmaOptions = getBaseKarmaOptions(options, context, useEsbuild);
+
+      return executeWithBuilder.execute(options, context, karmaOptions, transforms);
+    }),
+  );
+}
+
+function getBaseKarmaOptions(
+  options: KarmaBuilderOptions,
+  context: BuilderContext,
+  useEsbuild: boolean,
+): KarmaConfigOptions {
   let singleRun: boolean | undefined;
   if (options.watch !== undefined) {
     singleRun = !options.watch;
   }
 
-  return from(initialize(options, context, transforms.webpackConfiguration)).pipe(
-    switchMap(async ([karma, webpackConfig]) => {
-      // Determine project name from builder context target
-      const projectName = context.target?.project;
-      if (!projectName) {
-        throw new Error(`The 'karma' builder requires a target to be specified.`);
-      }
-
-      const karmaOptions: KarmaConfigOptions = options.karmaConfig
-        ? {}
-        : getBuiltInKarmaConfig(context.workspaceRoot, projectName);
-
-      karmaOptions.singleRun = singleRun;
-
-      // Workaround https://github.com/angular/angular-cli/issues/28271, by clearing context by default
-      // for single run executions. Not clearing context for multi-run (watched) builds allows the
-      // Jasmine Spec Runner to be visible in the browser after test execution.
-      karmaOptions.client ??= {};
-      karmaOptions.client.clearContext ??= singleRun ?? false; // `singleRun` defaults to `false` per Karma docs.
-
-      // Convert browsers from a string to an array
-      if (typeof options.browsers === 'string' && options.browsers) {
-        karmaOptions.browsers = options.browsers.split(',');
-      } else if (options.browsers === false) {
-        karmaOptions.browsers = [];
-      }
-
-      if (options.reporters) {
-        // Split along commas to make it more natural, and remove empty strings.
-        const reporters = options.reporters
-          .reduce<string[]>((acc, curr) => acc.concat(curr.split(',')), [])
-          .filter((x) => !!x);
-
-        if (reporters.length > 0) {
-          karmaOptions.reporters = reporters;
-        }
-      }
-
-      if (!options.main) {
-        webpackConfig.entry ??= {};
-        if (typeof webpackConfig.entry === 'object' && !Array.isArray(webpackConfig.entry)) {
-          if (Array.isArray(webpackConfig.entry['main'])) {
-            webpackConfig.entry['main'].push(getBuiltInMainFile());
-          } else {
-            webpackConfig.entry['main'] = [getBuiltInMainFile()];
-          }
-        }
-      }
-
-      const projectMetadata = await context.getProjectMetadata(projectName);
-      const sourceRoot = (projectMetadata.sourceRoot ?? projectMetadata.root ?? '') as string;
+  // Determine project name from builder context target
+  const projectName = context.target?.project;
+  if (!projectName) {
+    throw new Error(`The 'karma' builder requires a target to be specified.`);
+  }
 
-      webpackConfig.plugins ??= [];
-      webpackConfig.plugins.push(
-        new FindTestsPlugin({
-          include: options.include,
-          exclude: options.exclude,
-          workspaceRoot: context.workspaceRoot,
-          projectSourceRoot: path.join(context.workspaceRoot, sourceRoot),
-        }),
-      );
+  const karmaOptions: KarmaConfigOptions = options.karmaConfig
+    ? {}
+    : getBuiltInKarmaConfig(context.workspaceRoot, projectName, useEsbuild);
 
-      karmaOptions.buildWebpack = {
-        options,
-        webpackConfig,
-        logger: context.logger,
-      };
+  karmaOptions.singleRun = singleRun;
 
-      const parsedKarmaConfig = await karma.config.parseConfig(
-        options.karmaConfig && path.resolve(context.workspaceRoot, options.karmaConfig),
-        transforms.karmaOptions ? transforms.karmaOptions(karmaOptions) : karmaOptions,
-        { promiseConfig: true, throwErrors: true },
-      );
+  // Workaround https://github.com/angular/angular-cli/issues/28271, by clearing context by default
+  // for single run executions. Not clearing context for multi-run (watched) builds allows the
+  // Jasmine Spec Runner to be visible in the browser after test execution.
+  karmaOptions.client ??= {};
+  karmaOptions.client.clearContext ??= singleRun ?? false; // `singleRun` defaults to `false` per Karma docs.
 
-      return [karma, parsedKarmaConfig] as [typeof karma, KarmaConfigOptions];
-    }),
-    switchMap(
-      ([karma, karmaConfig]) =>
-        new Observable<BuilderOutput>((subscriber) => {
-          // Pass onto Karma to emit BuildEvents.
-          karmaConfig.buildWebpack ??= {};
-          if (typeof karmaConfig.buildWebpack === 'object') {
-            // eslint-disable-next-line @typescript-eslint/no-explicit-any
-            (karmaConfig.buildWebpack as any).failureCb ??= () =>
-              subscriber.next({ success: false });
-            // eslint-disable-next-line @typescript-eslint/no-explicit-any
-            (karmaConfig.buildWebpack as any).successCb ??= () =>
-              subscriber.next({ success: true });
-          }
+  // Convert browsers from a string to an array
+  if (typeof options.browsers === 'string' && options.browsers) {
+    karmaOptions.browsers = options.browsers.split(',');
+  } else if (options.browsers === false) {
+    karmaOptions.browsers = [];
+  }
 
-          // Complete the observable once the Karma server returns.
-          const karmaServer = new karma.Server(karmaConfig as Config, (exitCode) => {
-            subscriber.next({ success: exitCode === 0 });
-            subscriber.complete();
-          });
+  if (options.reporters) {
+    // Split along commas to make it more natural, and remove empty strings.
+    const reporters = options.reporters
+      .reduce<string[]>((acc, curr) => acc.concat(curr.split(',')), [])
+      .filter((x) => !!x);
 
-          const karmaStart = karmaServer.start();
+    if (reporters.length > 0) {
+      karmaOptions.reporters = reporters;
+    }
+  }
 
-          // Cleanup, signal Karma to exit.
-          return () => {
-            void karmaStart.then(() => karmaServer.stop());
-          };
-        }),
-    ),
-    defaultIfEmpty({ success: false }),
-  );
+  return karmaOptions;
 }
 
 function getBuiltInKarmaConfig(
   workspaceRoot: string,
   projectName: string,
+  useEsbuild: boolean,
 ): ConfigOptions & Record<string, unknown> {
   let coverageFolderName = projectName.charAt(0) === '@' ? projectName.slice(1) : projectName;
   if (/[A-Z]/.test(coverageFolderName)) {
@@ -206,13 +115,13 @@ function getBuiltInKarmaConfig(
   // Any changes to the config here need to be synced to: packages/schematics/angular/config/files/karma.conf.js.template
   return {
     basePath: '',
-    frameworks: ['jasmine', '@angular-devkit/build-angular'],
+    frameworks: ['jasmine', ...(useEsbuild ? [] : ['@angular-devkit/build-angular'])],
     plugins: [
       'karma-jasmine',
       'karma-chrome-launcher',
       'karma-jasmine-html-reporter',
       'karma-coverage',
-      '@angular-devkit/build-angular/plugins/karma',
+      ...(useEsbuild ? [] : ['@angular-devkit/build-angular/plugins/karma']),
     ].map((p) => workspaceRootRequire(p)),
     jasmineHtmlReporter: {
       suppressAll: true, // removes the duplicated traces
@@ -243,22 +152,62 @@ function getBuiltInKarmaConfig(
 export type { KarmaBuilderOptions };
 export default createBuilder<Record<string, string> & KarmaBuilderOptions>(execute);
 
-function getBuiltInMainFile(): string {
-  const content = Buffer.from(
-    `
-  import { getTestBed } from '@angular/core/testing';
-  import {
-    BrowserDynamicTestingModule,
-    platformBrowserDynamicTesting,
-   } from '@angular/platform-browser-dynamic/testing';
+async function getExecuteWithBuilder(
+  options: KarmaBuilderOptions,
+  context: BuilderContext,
+): Promise<[boolean, typeof import('./application_builder') | typeof import('./browser_builder')]> {
+  const useEsbuild = await checkForEsbuild(options, context);
+  const executeWithBuilderModule = useEsbuild
+    ? import('./application_builder')
+    : import('./browser_builder');
+
+  return [useEsbuild, await executeWithBuilderModule];
+}
 
-  // Initialize the Angular testing environment.
-  getTestBed().initTestEnvironment(BrowserDynamicTestingModule, platformBrowserDynamicTesting(), {
-    errorOnUnknownElements: true,
-    errorOnUnknownProperties: true
-  });
-`,
-  ).toString('base64');
+async function checkForEsbuild(
+  options: KarmaBuilderOptions,
+  context: BuilderContext,
+): Promise<boolean> {
+  if (options.builderMode !== BuilderMode.Detect) {
+    return options.builderMode === BuilderMode.Application;
+  }
+
+  // Look up the current project's build target using a development configuration.
+  const buildTargetSpecifier = `::development`;
+  const buildTarget = targetFromTargetString(
+    buildTargetSpecifier,
+    context.target?.project,
+    'build',
+  );
+
+  try {
+    const developmentBuilderName = await context.getBuilderNameForTarget(buildTarget);
+
+    return isEsbuildBased(developmentBuilderName);
+  } catch (e) {
+    if (!(e instanceof Error) || e.message !== 'Project target does not exist.') {
+      throw e;
+    }
+    // If we can't find a development builder, we can't use 'detect'.
+    throw new Error(
+      'Failed to detect the builder used by the application. Please set builderMode explicitly.',
+    );
+  }
+}
+
+function isEsbuildBased(
+  builderName: string,
+): builderName is
+  | '@angular/build:application'
+  | '@angular-devkit/build-angular:application'
+  | '@angular-devkit/build-angular:browser-esbuild' {
+  if (
+    builderName === '@angular/build:application' ||
+    builderName === '@angular-devkit/build-angular:application' ||
+    builderName === '@angular-devkit/build-angular:browser-esbuild'
+  ) {
+    return true;
+  }
 
-  return `ng-virtual-main.js!=!data:text/javascript;base64,${content}`;
+  return false;
 }
diff --git a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/init_test_bed.js b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/init_test_bed.js
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..0857396195c8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/init_test_bed.js
@@ -0,0 +1,19 @@
+/**
+ * @license
+ * Copyright Google LLC All Rights Reserved.
+ *
+ * Use of this source code is governed by an MIT-style license that can be
+ * found in the LICENSE file at https://angular.dev/license
+ */
+
+import { getTestBed } from '@angular/core/testing';
+import {
+  BrowserDynamicTestingModule,
+  platformBrowserDynamicTesting,
+} from '@angular/platform-browser-dynamic/testing';
+
+// Initialize the Angular testing environment.
+getTestBed().initTestEnvironment(BrowserDynamicTestingModule, platformBrowserDynamicTesting(), {
+  errorOnUnknownElements: true,
+  errorOnUnknownProperties: true,
+});
diff --git a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/schema.json b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/schema.json
index c29962aab7c8..24e74ab14212 100644
--- a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/schema.json
+++ b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/schema.json
@@ -267,6 +267,12 @@
         "type": "string"
       }
     },
+    "builderMode": {
+      "type": "string",
+      "description": "Determines how to build the code under test. If set to 'detect', attempts to follow the development builder.",
+      "enum": ["detect", "browser", "application"],
+      "default": "browser"
+    },
     "webWorkerTsConfig": {
       "type": "string",
       "description": "TypeScript configuration for Web Worker modules."
diff --git a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/behavior/code-coverage_spec.ts b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/behavior/code-coverage_spec.ts
index 38e93f6dd611..df27c1f067b5 100644
--- a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/behavior/code-coverage_spec.ts
+++ b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/behavior/code-coverage_spec.ts
@@ -23,6 +23,12 @@ const coveragePath = 'coverage/lcov.info';
 
 describeKarmaBuilder(execute, KARMA_BUILDER_INFO, (harness, setupTarget, isApplicationBuilder) => {
   describe('Behavior: "codeCoverage"', () => {
+    if (isApplicationBuilder) {
+      beforeEach(() => {
+        pending('Code coverage not implemented yet for application builder');
+      });
+    }
+
     beforeEach(() => {
       setupTarget(harness);
     });
diff --git a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/behavior/rebuilds_spec.ts b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/behavior/rebuilds_spec.ts
index d58cf7a851fb..8575cbbffa84 100644
--- a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/behavior/rebuilds_spec.ts
+++ b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/behavior/rebuilds_spec.ts
@@ -10,8 +10,14 @@ import { concatMap, count, debounceTime, take, timeout } from 'rxjs';
 import { execute } from '../../index';
 import { BASE_OPTIONS, KARMA_BUILDER_INFO, describeKarmaBuilder } from '../setup';
 
-describeKarmaBuilder(execute, KARMA_BUILDER_INFO, (harness, setupTarget) => {
+describeKarmaBuilder(execute, KARMA_BUILDER_INFO, (harness, setupTarget, isApplicationBuilder) => {
   describe('Behavior: "Rebuilds"', () => {
+    if (isApplicationBuilder) {
+      beforeEach(() => {
+        pending('--watch not implemented yet for application builder');
+      });
+    }
+
     beforeEach(() => {
       setupTarget(harness);
     });
diff --git a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/options/builder-mode_spec.ts b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/options/builder-mode_spec.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..46880291928c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/options/builder-mode_spec.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,74 @@
+/**
+ * @license
+ * Copyright Google LLC All Rights Reserved.
+ *
+ * Use of this source code is governed by an MIT-style license that can be
+ * found in the LICENSE file at https://angular.dev/license
+ */
+
+import { execute } from '../../index';
+import { BASE_OPTIONS, KARMA_BUILDER_INFO, describeKarmaBuilder } from '../setup';
+import { BuilderMode } from '../../schema';
+
+const ESBUILD_LOG_TEXT = 'Application bundle generation complete.';
+
+describeKarmaBuilder(execute, KARMA_BUILDER_INFO, (harness, setupTarget, isApplicationTarget) => {
+  describe('option: "builderMode"', () => {
+    beforeEach(() => {
+      setupTarget(harness);
+    });
+
+    it('"application" always uses esbuild', async () => {
+      harness.useTarget('test', {
+        ...BASE_OPTIONS,
+        builderMode: BuilderMode.Application,
+      });
+
+      const { result, logs } = await harness.executeOnce();
+      expect(result?.success).toBeTrue();
+      expect(logs).toContain(
+        jasmine.objectContaining({
+          message: jasmine.stringMatching(ESBUILD_LOG_TEXT),
+        }),
+      );
+    });
+
+    it('"browser" always uses webpack', async () => {
+      harness.useTarget('test', {
+        ...BASE_OPTIONS,
+        builderMode: BuilderMode.Browser,
+      });
+
+      const { result, logs } = await harness.executeOnce();
+      expect(result?.success).toBeTrue();
+      expect(logs).not.toContain(
+        jasmine.objectContaining({
+          message: jasmine.stringMatching(ESBUILD_LOG_TEXT),
+        }),
+      );
+    });
+
+    it('"detect" follows configuration of the development builder', async () => {
+      harness.useTarget('test', {
+        ...BASE_OPTIONS,
+        builderMode: BuilderMode.Detect,
+      });
+
+      const { result, logs } = await harness.executeOnce();
+      expect(result?.success).toBeTrue();
+      if (isApplicationTarget) {
+        expect(logs).toContain(
+          jasmine.objectContaining({
+            message: jasmine.stringMatching(ESBUILD_LOG_TEXT),
+          }),
+        );
+      } else {
+        expect(logs).not.toContain(
+          jasmine.objectContaining({
+            message: jasmine.stringMatching(ESBUILD_LOG_TEXT),
+          }),
+        );
+      }
+    });
+  });
+});
diff --git a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/options/code-coverage-exclude_spec.ts b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/options/code-coverage-exclude_spec.ts
index d10c6a74b0fb..4163a5db09d2 100644
--- a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/options/code-coverage-exclude_spec.ts
+++ b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/options/code-coverage-exclude_spec.ts
@@ -18,8 +18,14 @@ import { BASE_OPTIONS, KARMA_BUILDER_INFO, describeKarmaBuilder } from '../setup
 
 const coveragePath = 'coverage/lcov.info';
 
-describeKarmaBuilder(execute, KARMA_BUILDER_INFO, (harness, setupTarget) => {
+describeKarmaBuilder(execute, KARMA_BUILDER_INFO, (harness, setupTarget, isApplicationBuilder) => {
   describe('Option: "codeCoverageExclude"', () => {
+    if (isApplicationBuilder) {
+      beforeEach(() => {
+        pending('Code coverage not implemented yet for application builder');
+      });
+    }
+
     beforeEach(() => {
       setupTarget(harness);
     });
diff --git a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/options/code-coverage_spec.ts b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/options/code-coverage_spec.ts
index 5b8bd9d7217b..53c519ae5a7d 100644
--- a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/options/code-coverage_spec.ts
+++ b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/options/code-coverage_spec.ts
@@ -19,8 +19,14 @@ import { BASE_OPTIONS, KARMA_BUILDER_INFO, describeKarmaBuilder } from '../setup
 
 const coveragePath = 'coverage/lcov.info';
 
-describeKarmaBuilder(execute, KARMA_BUILDER_INFO, (harness, setupTarget) => {
+describeKarmaBuilder(execute, KARMA_BUILDER_INFO, (harness, setupTarget, isApplicationBuilder) => {
   describe('Option: "codeCoverage"', () => {
+    if (isApplicationBuilder) {
+      beforeEach(() => {
+        pending('Code coverage not implemented yet for application builder');
+      });
+    }
+
     beforeEach(() => {
       setupTarget(harness);
     });
diff --git a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/options/styles_spec.ts b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/options/styles_spec.ts
index 37f213cb087c..9eea6f4c1d80 100644
--- a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/options/styles_spec.ts
+++ b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/options/styles_spec.ts
@@ -134,7 +134,9 @@ describeKarmaBuilder(execute, KARMA_BUILDER_INFO, (harness, setupTarget) => {
       expect(logs).toContain(
         jasmine.objectContaining({
           level: 'error',
-          message: jasmine.stringMatching(`Can't resolve 'src/test-style-a.css'`),
+          message: jasmine.stringMatching(
+            /(Can't|Could not) resolve ['"]src\/test-style-a.css['"]/,
+          ),
         }),
       );
     });
diff --git a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/options/web-worker-tsconfig_spec.ts b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/options/web-worker-tsconfig_spec.ts
index 3bc06d86a10d..719ecc318b94 100644
--- a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/options/web-worker-tsconfig_spec.ts
+++ b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/options/web-worker-tsconfig_spec.ts
@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@
 import { execute } from '../../index';
 import { BASE_OPTIONS, KARMA_BUILDER_INFO, describeKarmaBuilder } from '../setup';
 
-describeKarmaBuilder(execute, KARMA_BUILDER_INFO, (harness, setupTarget) => {
+describeKarmaBuilder(execute, KARMA_BUILDER_INFO, (harness, setupTarget, isApplicationBuilder) => {
   describe('Option: "webWorkerTsConfig"', () => {
     beforeEach(() => {
       setupTarget(harness);
@@ -69,15 +69,27 @@ describeKarmaBuilder(execute, KARMA_BUILDER_INFO, (harness, setupTarget) => {
       });
     });
 
-    it(`should not parse web workers when "webWorkerTsConfig" is not set or set to undefined.`, async () => {
-      harness.useTarget('test', {
-        ...BASE_OPTIONS,
-        webWorkerTsConfig: undefined,
+    // Web workers work with the application builder _without_ setting webWorkerTsConfig.
+    if (isApplicationBuilder) {
+      it(`should parse web workers when "webWorkerTsConfig" is not set or set to undefined.`, async () => {
+        harness.useTarget('test', {
+          ...BASE_OPTIONS,
+          webWorkerTsConfig: undefined,
+        });
+
+        const { result } = await harness.executeOnce();
+        expect(result?.success).toBeTrue();
       });
+    } else {
+      it(`should not parse web workers when "webWorkerTsConfig" is not set or set to undefined.`, async () => {
+        harness.useTarget('test', {
+          ...BASE_OPTIONS,
+          webWorkerTsConfig: undefined,
+        });
 
-      await harness.writeFile(
-        './src/app/app.component.spec.ts',
-        `
+        await harness.writeFile(
+          './src/app/app.component.spec.ts',
+          `
         import { TestBed } from '@angular/core/testing';
         import { AppComponent } from './app.component';
 
@@ -91,11 +103,12 @@ describeKarmaBuilder(execute, KARMA_BUILDER_INFO, (harness, setupTarget) => {
               .toThrowError(/Failed to construct 'Worker'/);
           });
         });`,
-      );
+        );
 
-      const { result } = await harness.executeOnce();
-      expect(result?.success).toBeTrue();
-    });
+        const { result } = await harness.executeOnce();
+        expect(result?.success).toBeTrue();
+      });
+    }
 
     it(`should parse web workers when "webWorkerTsConfig" is set.`, async () => {
       harness.useTarget('test', {
diff --git a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/setup.ts b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/setup.ts
index 6f0cde5927d4..23d6f3a0f688 100644
--- a/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/setup.ts
+++ b/packages/angular_devkit/build_angular/src/builders/karma/tests/setup.ts
@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@
  * found in the LICENSE file at https://angular.dev/license
  */
 
-import { Schema } from '../schema';
+import { BuilderMode, Schema } from '../schema';
 import { BuilderHandlerFn } from '@angular-devkit/architect';
 import { json } from '@angular-devkit/core';
 import { ApplicationBuilderOptions as ApplicationSchema, buildApplication } from '@angular/build';
@@ -41,6 +41,7 @@ export const BASE_OPTIONS = Object.freeze<Schema>({
   browsers: 'ChromeHeadlessCI',
   progress: false,
   watch: false,
+  builderMode: BuilderMode.Detect,
 });
 
 const optionSchemaCache = new Map<string, json.schema.JsonSchema>();