Kimi Code Desktop

An unofficial, open-source Windows desktop client and agent harness for Kimi Code CLI.

Sign in with your own Kimi account, use your own plan and quota, open local projects, and run Kimi coding sessions through a native desktop interface.

[!IMPORTANT]
Kimi Code Desktop is a community project. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or supported by Moonshot AI.

Download

Download the latest signed updater build from GitHub Releases.

Current version: 0.9.0

Requirements:

• Windows 10 or Windows 11
• Microsoft WebView2
• A Kimi account with access to Kimi Code

The installer includes the local Node.js runtime used by the desktop orchestration service. End users do not need Node.js, pnpm, or Rust.

Getting started

1. Install and open Kimi Code Desktop.
2. Complete onboarding. If Kimi Code CLI is missing, the app links to the official installation guide; it never downloads or executes a remote install script.
3. Select Begin sign-in and approve the device code with your own Kimi account.
4. Open a folder for project work or create a standalone chat.

Authentication remains owned by the official Kimi Code CLI. The desktop app does not ship an account, copy OAuth tokens, or create a second credential store.

Highlights

• Project workspaces with multiple resumable chats per folder
• Standalone chats that stay separate from project files and Git state
• A continuous graphite workspace with compact navigation, a bottom-anchored transcript, and an explicit jump-to-latest control
• Streaming Markdown summaries with chronological, collapsible work and tool activity
• Prompt queueing, steering, cancellation, edit-and-retry, copy, and turn undo controls
• Live Kimi model, reasoning, permission, context, and quota surfaces, including every effort value offered by the installed runtime
• Discovered project and user skills, confirmed workspace-local skill installation, real subagent activity, and redacted MCP configuration
• Persistent monitoring for finite Kimi background tasks that request automatic notification, followed by a queued verification report
• Integrated Git changes, diff, stage, unstage, and commit workflows
• Workspace terminal, file preview, and agent-controlled localhost app preview
• Clickable local paths, durable failure reasons, and revealable runtime logs
• Configurable theme, typography, density, layout, shortcuts, and panel sizes
• Signed in-app updates with explicit install and restart controls

See the User Guide for the full desktop workflow.

Keyboard shortcuts

The send shortcut can be changed in General settings.

Privacy and security

• The local orchestration service binds only to 127.0.0.1.
• Packaged connections require a random per-launch token.
• Kimi credentials remain in the official Kimi CLI home and are never read by the renderer.
• File resources are workspace-bound, text-only, and size-limited.
• Local skill installation accepts only validated files or bundles inside the active workspace and never overwrites an installed skill.
• App preview accepts only localhost and 127.0.0.1 URLs.
• Preview screenshots use an isolated temporary Microsoft Edge profile, never a person's normal browser profile.
• No application telemetry is implemented.

Read SECURITY.md before reporting a vulnerability.

Development

Requirements for contributors:

• Node.js 22 or newer for development; Windows packaging uses the checksum-pinned Node.js v22.22.2 x64 runtime
• pnpm 10
• Rust and Cargo
• WebView2
• Kimi Code CLI 0.29.1, the current verified reference runtime, or a compatible ACP version

Install and start the native development app:

pnpm install --frozen-lockfile
pnpm dev

Use the deterministic fake ACP runtime when an account is not available:

$env:KIMI_FAKE='1'
pnpm dev

Verify a change:

pnpm typecheck
pnpm test
pnpm build:services
git diff --check

Create an unsigned local installer for development testing:

pnpm bundle:local

Published installers must be built by the tagged GitHub Actions release workflow. It produces the installer, updater signature, update manifest, and SHA-256 checksums with the repository's protected signing secrets.

Architecture

This pnpm monorepo contains three applications:

• apps/desktop: Tauri v2 shell and native Windows integration
• apps/web: React projection layer and desktop UI
• apps/server: ACP client, durable event projection, authentication broker, Git, terminal, preview, and update support

Kimi Code CLI remains the source of truth for models, permissions, sessions, commands, skills, subagents, MCP tools, authentication, and subscription usage. Read Architecture for trust boundaries and data flow.

Documentation

• User Guide
• Architecture
• Design System
• Contributing
• Security Policy
• Release Process
• Kimi ACP Runtime Notes
• Third-party Notices

License and trademarks

Source code is licensed under the MIT License.

Kimi, Moonshot AI, and their names, logos, and marks belong to their respective owners. They are not covered by the MIT license. Forks and redistributed builds must remain clearly unofficial and must not imply endorsement.