Using Kimi Code CLI in IDEs

Kimi Code CLI supports integration into IDEs via the Agent Client Protocol (ACP), letting you use AI-assisted coding directly inside your editor.

Prerequisites

Before configuring your IDE, make sure Kimi Code CLI is installed and you have completed the login setup.

The ACP adapter is exposed as the kimi acp subcommand. The IDE launches it as a child process and communicates over stdin/stdout using JSON-RPC. Each time the IDE creates a session, the CLI reuses its existing authentication state — no need to log in again.

Path note

Child processes launched from an IDE GUI on macOS typically do not inherit the terminal shell's PATH. If kimi is not in a system directory like /usr/local/bin, use the absolute path in your IDE configuration. Run which kimi in a terminal to find the active path.

Using Kimi Code CLI in Zed

Zed is a modern editor with native ACP support.

Add the following to Zed's config file at ~/.config/zed/settings.json:

{
  "agent_servers": {
    "Kimi Code CLI": {
      "type": "custom",
      "command": "kimi",
      "args": ["acp"],
      "env": {}
    }
  }
}

Configuration fields:

• type: fixed value "custom"
• command: path to the Kimi Code CLI executable. If kimi is not on PATH, use the full path (e.g. /Users/you/.local/bin/kimi).
• args: startup arguments. The acp subcommand switches the CLI into ACP mode.
• env: additional environment variables; usually leave this empty. Zed injects a default environment automatically.

After saving, open a new conversation in Zed's Agent panel and it will launch a Kimi Code CLI ACP subprocess using the configuration above. MCP servers declared in Zed's agent_servers section are also forwarded to the kimi side via the ACP protocol.

Using Kimi Code CLI in JetBrains IDEs

JetBrains IDEs (IntelliJ IDEA, PyCharm, WebStorm, etc.) support ACP through the AI chat plugin.

If you do not have a JetBrains AI subscription, you can enable llm.enable.mock.response in the Registry to access the AI chat panel in ACP-only scenarios. Press Shift twice and search for "Registry" to open it.

In the AI chat panel menu, click Configure ACP agents and add the following configuration:

{
  "agent_servers": {
    "Kimi Code CLI": {
      "command": "~/.local/bin/kimi",
      "args": ["acp"],
      "env": {}
    }
  }
}

JetBrains is strict about the command field — always use an absolute path, which you can get by running which kimi in a terminal. After saving, Kimi Code CLI will appear in the AI chat's agent selector.

Troubleshooting

• Session disconnects immediately / IDE shows "agent exited": usually a wrong command path or a missing login. Run kimi acp in a terminal first to verify — if it blocks waiting for stdin, the CLI itself is fine and the problem is in the IDE configuration; if it exits immediately with an error, follow the error message (most commonly you need to run /login).
• IDE shows "auth required": the CLI has no usable authentication token. Exit the IDE, run kimi in a terminal to complete login, then restart the IDE.
• MCP tools not visible: check the kimi acp reference capability table to confirm that the MCP transport type configured in your IDE is supported. The Kimi Code CLI ACP adapter currently supports http and stdio transports; sse and acp types are silently dropped and a warning is written to the log.

Next steps

• kimi acp reference — ACP capability matrix and method coverage details
• kimi command reference — full subcommand list