Pi Agent First Conversation

After completing installation and authentication configuration, this chapter takes you through your first complete conversation experience.

You will become familiar with the interface layout and basic operations.

Launch Pi Agent

Enter your project directory and launch Pi Agent:

$ cd ~/projects/example-demo
$ pi

You will see Pi Agent's interactive interface appear in the terminal.

The interface is divided into four main areas:

If you think the header information shown at startup is too much, you can enable in settingsquietStartupthe option to hide it.

First Task

After entering the interface, type your first request and press Enter:

Help me summarize the structure and main functions of this project.

Pi Agent will use built-in tools to read your project files, analyze the code structure, and then return a summary.

You can see in the message area what the AI is doing—including which tools it called and which files it read.

The output of a complete conversation looks like:

> read README.md（1.2k 字符）
> read src/main.ts（3.4k 字符）

这是一个基于 TypeScript 的终端编程助手，主要功能分为会话管理、工具调度和扩展加载三部分。
Tokens: 2.4k 输入 / 410 输出  |  费用 $0.0152

Pi Agent provides four built-in tools by default: read, write, edit, and bash. For full details, see the "Core Concepts Overview" chapter.

Referencing Files

You can reference specific files in a conversation; there are two ways:

Method 1: @ syntax (in-editor search)

Type in the edit area@A fuzzy search of project files will automatically pop up:

@src/app.ts 解释这个文件的功能

Method 2: Command-line arguments

Pass file references directly at startup:

$ pi @README.md "总结一下这个文档"
$ pi @src/app.ts @src/app.test.ts "对比这两个文件"

You can also reference image files:

$ pi -p @screenshot.png "这张截图里显示了什么"

Pasting Images

Pi Agent supports sending images in conversations; the operation methods vary slightly across platforms.

Executing Commands in Conversation

You can run shell commands directly from the edit area without exiting Pi Agent:

!npm run lint
!git diff

with!Commands beginning with the prefix will be executed, and the output will be automatically sent to the AI for review.

Execute!npm run lintThe result is similar to:

> [email protected] lint
> eslint .
0 errors, 0 warnings

with!!Commands beginning with the prefix will also execute, butwill notsend the output to the AI:

!!echo "这只在本地显示"
这只在本地显示

Using!!the prefix to execute commands that don't need AI review (such as opening files, viewing environment variables) can avoid wasting the context window.

Multiline Input and External Editor

Large blocks of text can be written using multiline input or an external editor; here are the relevant shortcuts.

When you need to input a large block of text, pressCtrl+Gand the system default editor will open (such as nano, vim, or VS Code); after saving, the content will automatically be filled into Pi Agent's edit area.

Message Queue

Pi Agent allows you to send messages while the AI is working, without having to wait for it to finish:

In Windows Terminal, Alt+Enter is the default fullscreen shortcut. If you want Pi Agent to receive this shortcut, refer toMulti-platform deploymentfor instructions on remapping.

Non-interactive Mode

In addition to interactive conversations, you can also use Pi Agent quickly in the following ways:

Print mode (-p) is ideal for integrating into scripts and CI pipelines.

Creating a Project Instructions File

To help the AI better understand your project, it's recommended to create an AGENTS.md file.

Save the following content as a Markdown file with the pathproject root/AGENTS.md：

Pi Agent will automatically load this file at startup.

It will also load from~/.pi/agent/AGENTS.mdthe global instructions and instruction files in parent directories.

After updating AGENTS.md, use/reloadcommand to hot-reload, no restart needed.

If you previously used Claude Code, existing CLAUDE.md files can be directly recognized and used by Pi Agent without renaming.

Interface Overview

The following is a quick reference for the main shortcuts in Pi Agent's interactive mode: