Install

Install the CLI, the desktop app, or both — then start chatting with your agents.

Prerequisites

• Linux, macOS, or Windows. Release binaries are available for all three platforms.
• An agent CLI or API key — install at least one of the built-in agents you want to use (see Agents).

Install the CLI

Linux and macOS (installs to ~/.local/bin):

curl -fsSL https://nui.plmbr.dev/install.sh | sh

Windows (installs to %LOCALAPPDATA%\nui and adds it to your user PATH):

irm https://nui.plmbr.dev/install.ps1 | iex

Install a specific version:

NUI_VERSION=v0.6.2-beta curl -fsSL https://nui.plmbr.dev/install.sh | sh

$env:NUI_VERSION = "v0.6.2-beta"; irm https://nui.plmbr.dev/install.ps1 | iex

Manual CLI install

Download the archive for your platform from GitHub Releases, extract the nui binary (or nui.exe on Windows), and place it on your PATH.

Look for assets named nui_<tag>_<os>_<arch>.tar.gz (or .zip on Windows).

Install the desktop app

Prefer a native window? Download the desktop package for your platform from GitHub Releases. Assets look like:

Platform	Asset
macOS Apple Silicon	nui-desktop_<tag>_darwin_arm64.zip
macOS Intel	nui-desktop_<tag>_darwin_amd64.zip
Windows	nui-desktop_<tag>_windows_amd64.zip
Linux	nui-desktop_<tag>_linux_amd64.tar.gz / _linux_arm64.tar.gz

macOS

1. Download and unzip the darwin archive for your chip.
2. Clear Gatekeeper quarantine (builds are ad-hoc signed, not notarized):

xattr -cr ~/Downloads/nui.app
open ~/Downloads/nui.app

1. Optionally drag nui.app into Applications.

On first launch the app starts the local server and installs the bundled CLI to ~/.local/bin/nui (and can update your shell profile so nui is on PATH). Open a new terminal after the first launch if you need the CLI elsewhere.

If macOS still blocks the app, right-click → Open, or allow it under System Settings → Privacy & Security.

Windows

1. Download and unzip nui-desktop_<tag>_windows_amd64.zip.
2. Run nui-desktop.exe (WebView2 is required; Windows 11 usually has it).
3. On first launch the app installs the bundled CLI to %LOCALAPPDATA%\nui and adds that folder to your user PATH when needed.

Linux

1. Download and extract the linux archive for your arch.
2. Run ./nui-desktop (needs GTK3 + WebKitGTK 4.1).
3. On first launch the app installs the bundled CLI to ~/.local/bin/nui.

You can still use the curl/irm CLI installers without the desktop app.

macOS note (CLI)

The install script strips quarantine and ad-hoc codesigns the CLI so it runs on current macOS. If you install the CLI manually and see zsh: killed, run:

xattr -cr /path/to/nui
codesign -s - -f /path/to/nui

Then allow the binary under System Settings → Privacy & Security if prompted.

First run

CLI / browser

1. Start the server. nui server listens on port 8080 by default.
2. Open the UI. Navigate to http://localhost:8080 or use nui server --open.
3. Pick an agent. Choose a built-in or installed agent and a working directory.
4. Send a prompt. nui creates a session automatically on first launch.

Launch with a specific agent and prompt:

nui server --agent-type claude-code --prompt "Review the README" --open

Desktop

Open the app — it attaches to an existing nui server if one is already listening, otherwise it starts the server for you. Use the same agent picker and chat UI as the browser.

Agent prerequisites

Install the agent CLI you want to use and make sure it is on your PATH:

Agent (ADL id)	CLI command
claude-code	claude
pi	pi
codex	codex
opencode	opencode

API agents (no CLI required) use provider API keys instead:

Agent	API key environment variable
Anthropic	ANTHROPIC_API_KEY (or ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN)
OpenAI	OPENAI_API_KEY
Gemini	GEMINI_API_KEY or GOOGLE_API_KEY
OpenRouter	OPENROUTER_API_KEY
Ollama	none (local; optional OLLAMA_HOST)

Optional:

• Docker — for sandboxed built-in agents and custom Docker-based agents
• Dev Container CLI — for devcontainer harness agents (npm install -g @devcontainers/cli)

Troubleshooting

If something doesn’t work, check:

• nui server output in the terminal where you started the server (or the desktop app logs).
• That your agent CLI is on PATH and authenticated.
• On macOS desktop: you ran xattr -cr on nui.app after download.
• GitHub Issues for known problems.

For deeper issues, see the developer guide in the repo.