aico v0.54.4

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Install

Download the desktop app, or install the aico command for the terminal and VS Code. No account to make: you add a provider key and start.

The desktop app

Windows 10/11 (x64) and Linux (x64). The engine runs inside it, so there is no Node to install, and it shares ~/.aico (chats, keys, skills, settings) with every other way in. There is no macOS build yet.

SystemDownloadNotes
WindowsAICO-Setup-0.54.4-win-x64.exeUpdates itself. Not code-signed yet, so SmartScreen asks once (More info → Run anyway).
LinuxAppImage · .debThe AppImage updates itself.

Every build: the latest release.

The aico command

For the terminal, the local web portal and the VS Code extension. Node 22.5 or newer: aico uses Node's built-in SQLite, which arrived in 22.5. Check with node --version. It is one file on the release:

npm install -g https://github.com/suhail-akhtar/aico/releases/download/v0.54.4/aico-0.54.4.tgz

To update, run the same command with the newer release's link. Then aico serve prints a tokenised 127.0.0.1 URL and opens it; drop serve to get the terminal interface instead.

There is a package called aico on npm and it is not this. npx aico and npm install -g aico install unrelated software. Install from the release link above.

First run

  1. Give it a provider

    An interactive wizard that writes to ~/.aico/settings.json:

    aico provider add

    You need a key from at least one of OpenAI, Anthropic, OpenRouter, Google Gemini or Z.AI — or a local Ollama, which needs no key at all. See Providers.

  2. Point it at a project

    aico works in the directory you start it in.

    cd ~/code/my-project
aico serve

  3. Ask for something small first

    Something you can check in a minute — "what does this repo do?", or a failing test you already know about. The first task is for learning how it reports, not for saving time.

  4. Turn on Plan mode for anything bigger

    The write tools are removed for the turn, so it investigates and comes back with a plan you approve or amend. Cheaper than reviewing a change you did not expect.

In VS Code

A panel of its own beside Chat, drawn for the editor and styled from your theme. Edits apply as WorkspaceEdits so Ctrl+Z takes them back, the active file and selection travel with your questions, and tool approvals are real dialogs. Not on the Marketplace yet, so install the packaged build from the release (aico-vscode-0.6.41.vsix): 

code --install-extension aico-vscode-0.6.41.vsix

Then reload the window — VS Code does not load a newly installed extension into windows that are already open, and a keypress in one of those does nothing at all. Run aico: Check the Setup from the command palette to confirm it is live; if that command is missing, the window still needs reloading.

It needs aico on your PATH, or aico.command pointed at it. See what it does and deliberately does not do.

The terminal, if you prefer it

aico                                   # interactive
aico -p "fix the failing tests"        # one-shot
aico -c                                # continue the last session
aico -m glm-4.6                        # pick a model for this run
aico --agent review -p "review my diff"

The model name decides the provider, overriding any configured default — -m glm-4.6 goes to Z.AI even if your default is OpenRouter.

When something is wrong

aico /doctor      # environment check
aico /status      # true context size, and how much is hidden
aico /cost        # what this session has spent

The most common setup surprise is a key in the wrong place — see where to put your key.