Install kimi-cli with Homebrew, scoop, winget

Project links

• Homepage
• Repository
• Upstream docs
• Package manager page

Commands and aliases

• kimi
• kimi-cli

Project history

Kimi CLI was the earlier MoonshotAI terminal-agent package around the Kimi platform. The repository includes Python package structure, docs, examples, SDK material, tests, and release automation, showing a full CLI product rather than a thin API wrapper.

In 2026 the project began a transition to Kimi Code CLI. The README states that Kimi CLI is evolving into Kimi Code CLI, that installing Kimi Code CLI migrates configuration and sessions, and that the Kimi CLI project will be gradually wound down while docs and existing installations remain available.

Adoption history

Kimi CLI accumulated a visible developer audience on GitHub and was packaged for Homebrew in this batch. Its official README also documents integrations with VS Code, Agent Client Protocol-compatible editors, Zsh, and MCP servers, placing it in the 2025-2026 wave of terminal AI agent tooling.

The companion kimi-agent-rs repository describes a Rust rewrite of the Python kimi-cli runtime that must preserve wire protocol, message formats, ~/.kimi data layout, tool schemas, and externally observable behavior, which is a strong signal that Kimi CLI had become a compatibility target inside MoonshotAI's agent tooling.

How it is used

Users run Kimi CLI as an interactive terminal agent, authenticate with /login, connect MCP servers, and use it either directly in a terminal or as an ACP agent server for editors such as Zed or JetBrains IDEs.

Its configuration and credential paths matter to package users because Kimi Code CLI migration preserves that state rather than treating the successor as a clean-room replacement.

Why package nerds care

Kimi CLI is interesting as a transition package: it represents the Python-era MoonshotAI terminal agent and the compatibility surface that newer runtimes and successor CLIs had to carry forward.

For package managers, the useful bit is not only the binary name but the state layout under ~/.kimi, because that is what determines whether upgrades and successor packages can avoid breaking developer sessions.

Timeline

• 2026: Kimi CLI release 1.46.0 included docs announcing the evolution to the Kimi Code successor project.
• 2026: Kimi CLI release 1.47.0, released on 2026-06-05, renamed project docs to Kimi CLI and guided users to upgrade to Kimi Code.
• 2026: Kimi CLI release 1.48.0 assets were published on 2026-06-22.

Related projects

• Kimi Code CLI is the successor project named by the Kimi CLI README.
• kimi-agent-rs is the Rust rewrite that preserves Kimi CLI compatibility.
• Agent Client Protocol, MCP, Zsh integration, and the Kimi Code VS Code extension are adjacent integration surfaces documented by the project.

Sources

• https://github.com/MoonshotAI/kimi-agent-rs
• https://github.com/MoonshotAI/kimi-cli
• https://github.com/MoonshotAI/kimi-cli/releases
• https://moonshotai.github.io/kimi-cli/