Quickstart

Source: https://pi.dev/docs/latest/quickstart

Install and Uninstall

bash

npm install -g --ignore-scripts @earendil-works/pi-coding-agent

--ignore-scripts disables dependency lifecycle scripts. Pi does not need install scripts for normal npm installs.

Uninstall with the matching package manager. Curl and npm installs are removed with:

bash

npm uninstall -g @earendil-works/pi-coding-agent

Uninstalling Pi leaves settings, credentials, sessions, and installed packages in ~/.pi/agent/.

Authenticate

Use /login in interactive mode for subscription providers: Claude Pro/Max, ChatGPT Plus/Pro (Codex), and GitHub Copilot. API-key providers can be configured by environment variable or stored through /login in ~/.pi/agent/auth.json.

bash

export ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=sk-ant-...
pi

First Session

Run Pi in the project directory:

bash

cd /path/to/project
pi

By default, the model gets read, write, edit, and bash. Additional read-only built-ins grep, find, and ls are available through tool options.

Project Instructions

Pi loads context files at startup:

~/.pi/agent/AGENTS.md
AGENTS.md or CLAUDE.md from parent directories and current directory

Run /reload or restart after changing context files.

Common First Tasks

bash

pi @README.md "Summarize this"
pi @src/app.ts @src/app.test.ts "Review these together"
!npm run lint
!!npm run lint
pi -c
pi -r
pi --name "my task"
pi --session <path|id>
pi -p "Summarize this codebase"
cat README.md | pi -p "Summarize this text"
pi --mode json "List files"
pi --mode rpc --no-session

Use !command to run shell and send output to the model. Use !!command to run without adding output to model context.