# Run directly (no install needed)
npx helixmind

# Or install globally
npm install -g helixmind
helixmind

• Node.js 18+
• An API key for at least one provider: Anthropic, OpenAI, or Ollama (local, no key needed)

When you start HelixMind for the first time, you choose how to use it:

 +----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
 |  Welcome to HelixMind                                                      |
 |                                                                            |
 |  Login - free, unlock everything        Open Source - no account needed    |
 |                                                                            |
 |    [v] Jarvis Task Daemon                       [v] AI Agent + 22 Tools            |
 |    [v] Validation Matrix                [v] Spiral Memory                  |
 |    [v] Security Monitor                 [v] Anthropic/OpenAI/Ollama        |
 |    [v] Autonomous Mode                  [x] No Jarvis / No Validation      |
 |    [v] 3D Brain Management              [x] No Monitor / No Security       |
 |    [v] 3 Brains + Live WS               [x] No Brain Management            |
 |                                                                            |
 |    No credit card - Free forever - works offline                           |
 +----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
 -> [1] Login / [2] Open Source:

Both modes are fully functional coding agents. The open source mode includes everything you need for day-to-day AI-assisted development. Connected mode adds advanced orchestration and monitoring features via a free account at helix-mind.ai.

You can switch anytime by running helixmind login.

HelixMind operates as an autonomous coding agent with built-in tools:

All tools go through a 3-tier permission system: auto (safe operations), ask (confirm first), dangerous (requires explicit approval). Use --yolo to auto-approve everything.

A 5-level hierarchical memory that persists across sessions:

  Level 1 - Focus       Most relevant, recent context
  Level 2 - Active      Related files, dependencies, web knowledge
  Level 3 - Reference   Decisions, patterns, code structure
  Level 4 - Archive     Compressed summaries, old sessions
  Level 5 - Deep        Long-term knowledge, project history

Context flows between levels based on relevance, recency, and usage. Web knowledge enrichment automatically fetches and stores relevant information from the internet as you work.

For complex multi-task requests, HelixMind automatically decomposes the work and spawns parallel worker sessions:

# Auto-detected when you send multi-part requests
> "Create a user model, add CRUD endpoints, and write tests for each"

# Or force it manually
/swarm refactor auth module, update all tests, fix the CI pipeline

Each worker gets its own session with file-level locking to prevent conflicts. Results are merged and summarized when all workers complete.

Every tool call and chat message creates an automatic checkpoint. Double-tap ESC to open the checkpoint browser and revert to any previous state (chat history, code changes, or both).

Bugs are automatically detected from your messages (in English and German) and tracked in .helixmind/bugs.json. Each bug gets evidence, status, and persists across sessions.

Headless Chrome integration via Puppeteer for web testing, scraping, and visual analysis:

/browser https://example.com
> "Click the login button and fill in the form"
> "Take a screenshot and analyze the layout"

Switch providers at runtime with /model.

HelixMind includes a Model Context Protocol server for integration with other tools:

• Claude Code
• Cursor
• VS Code (Copilot)
• Windsurf
• JetBrains AI

# Start interactive chat
helixmind

# Initialize in a project (creates .helixmind/)
helixmind init

# Send a single message
helixmind chat -m "fix all lint errors in src/"

# YOLO mode - auto-approve everything
helixmind chat --yolo

# Skip permission prompts
helixmind chat -s

# Feed files into spiral memory
helixmind feed src/ --deep

# Watch files and update spiral live
helixmind feed src/ --watch

ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=sk-ant-...    # For Claude
OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-...           # For OpenAI/GPT
# Ollama: no key needed (auto-detected on localhost:11434)

Create .helixmind/config.json in your project root:

{
  "provider": "anthropic",
  "model": "claude-sonnet-4-20250514"
}

Or use the CLI:

helixmind config set provider anthropic
helixmind config set model claude-sonnet-4-20250514

git clone https://github.com/DancingTedDanson011/HelixMind.git
cd HelixMind

npm install
npm run build
npm run dev      # Dev mode with watch
npm test         # Run 979 tests

AGPL-3.0 -- Free for open-source use. Commercial licenses available.