What I learned building an opinionated and minimal coding agent
Lessons I learned while building my own coding agent from scratch.
The author built a minimal, opinionated coding agent harness due to frustrations with complex tools like Claude Code, which added unwanted features and broke workflows.
Key components include pi-ai for unified multi-provider LLM APIs handling four core APIs with tool calling and context handoffs, pi-agent-core for agent loops, pi-tui for flicker-free terminal UIs, and pi-coding-agent with minimal prompts, tools, and no planning or sub-agents. The design prioritizes precise context control, inspectability, and self-hosting compatibility while avoiding unnecessary complexity.