I have been building Phonton CLI, an open-source local-first AI coding agent.
The idea is simple: instead of treating an AI coding tool like a chat box, Phonton treats it like an engineering workflow.
It tries to follow this loop:
- You give it a goal.
- It creates a plan.
- It works against your local repo context.
- It verifies the generated diff.
- You review the result before accepting it.
Most AI coding tools are optimized for speed and convenience. Phonton is more focused on making AI-generated changes easier to trust.
Why I built it
I wanted a CLI agent that was:
- local-first
- BYOK, so you use your own provider keys
- review-oriented
- built around verification
- able to remember repo decisions locally
- useful from the terminal
The goal is not to replace every tool like Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, or OpenCode. The goal is to explore a stricter workflow for AI-assisted coding: plan, verify, review, then ship.
Current status
Phonton is still early alpha.
It currently has:
- a Rust CLI/TUI
- provider adapters
- planning
- local memory
- repo indexing
- verification flow
- review commands
- checkpoint/rollback work
There are still rough edges, and I am not claiming it is production-ready yet.
Try it
npm install -g phonton-cli
phonton doctor
phonton plan "add input validation to config loading"
GitHub:
https://github.com/phonton-dev/phonton-cli
I would appreciate feedback from developers who already use AI coding agents and care about local-first workflows, reviewable diffs, and verification.