Press Ctrl+A, say what you need in plain language — get a shell command in your prompt. Nothing runs until you press Enter.
Works with OpenAI-compatible APIs (OpenAI, Ollama, OpenRouter, etc.).
Homebrew
brew install karpulix/tools/ai-cliBinary — download from Releases, extract, add to PATH.
From source (Go 1.25+)
git clone https://github.com/karpulix/ai-cli.git
cd ai-cli && go build -o ai-cli .
sudo mv ai-cli /usr/local/bin/ai-cli install zsh adds a widget to ~/.zshrc and registers Ctrl+A to open the TUI from your prompt. Re-run after moving the binary — it updates the path automatically.
ai-cli install zsh
source ~/.zshrc # or open a new terminalFor bash: ai-cli install bash and source ~/.bashrc.
The command is inserted into your prompt line, not executed. Review it, then press Enter.
- Run
ai-cli— if no profile exists, the profile manager opens. - Or:
ai-cli config set-keyto create a default profile.
Manage profiles in the TUI: Ctrl+P (add, switch, delete). Each profile has API key, model, and optional base URL (for Ollama: http://localhost:11434/v1).
Config and history are stored automatically:
- macOS:
~/Library/Application Support/ai-cli/ - Linux:
~/.config/ai-cli/
From the shell: Ctrl+A → describe command → Enter → command appears in your prompt.
Standalone: ai-cli
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
ai-cli --version |
Version |
ai-cli config set-key |
Create default profile |
ai-cli config refresh-prompt |
Reset prompt template |
ai-cli install zsh|bash |
Add shell widget |
ai-cli init zsh|bash |
Print widget snippet |
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
Enter |
Generate command |
Tab |
Prompt ↔ History |
Ctrl+P |
Profiles |
Ctrl+O |
Info (paths, version, system) |
Ctrl+N |
New profile (in profile manager) |
Esc |
Cancel / close panel |
Stored in config.json as prompt_template. Use {system_info} — OS and shell are filled in at request time.
Shell widget (Ctrl+A) works on macOS and Linux with zsh/bash. TUI runs on Windows in a terminal, but without shell integration.
Developers: BUILD_AND_DEPLOY.md