A Cursor-inspired, AI-powered code editor built with Electron, Monaco Editor, and Google Gemini 2.0 Flash.
Latest Release Platforms Gemini 2.0 Flash Monaco Editor
| Platform | Installer |
|---|---|
| Windows | Helix-Setup-x.x.x.exe |
| macOS | Helix-x.x.x.dmg (Intel + Apple Silicon) |
| Linux | Helix-x.x.x.AppImage |
First launch: You'll be asked for a Gemini API key. Get one free at aistudio.google.com/apikey.
- Monaco Editor — Full VS Code editor engine with syntax highlighting for 50+ languages
- AI Chat Panel — Conversational AI powered by Gemini 2.0 Flash with streaming responses
- Inline AI Completions — Ghost-text completions as you type (like Copilot)
- File Explorer — Browse, open, create, rename, and delete files and folders
- Integrated Terminal — Real PTY terminal via node-pty with multiple tabs
- Git Integration — View diffs, stage files, commit, and see branch status
- Diff Editor — Side-by-side diff view when AI suggests code changes
- Command Palette — Fuzzy search for all commands and files (
Ctrl+Shift+P/Ctrl+P) - Resizable Panels — Drag to resize sidebar, AI panel, and terminal
- Persistent Settings — Font, theme, tab size, word wrap saved across sessions
- Multi-platform — Windows, macOS (Intel + Apple Silicon), Linux
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
Ctrl+S |
Save file |
Ctrl+P |
Quick open file |
Ctrl+Shift+P |
Command palette |
Ctrl+`` `` |
Toggle terminal |
Ctrl+B |
Toggle sidebar |
Ctrl+L |
Toggle AI panel |
Ctrl+W |
Close tab |
Ctrl+Tab |
Next tab |
Ctrl+Shift+Tab |
Previous tab |
Ctrl+Shift+G |
Source control |
Ctrl+Shift+E |
Explorer |
Ctrl+H |
Find & Replace |
Shift+Alt+F |
Format document |
Alt+Z |
Toggle word wrap |
Ctrl+, |
Open settings |
| Layer | Technology |
|---|---|
| Shell | Electron 28 |
| Renderer | React 18 + Vite 5 |
| Editor | Monaco Editor (VS Code engine) |
| State | Zustand 4 |
| AI | Google Gemini 2.0 Flash (@google/generative-ai) |
| Terminal | xterm.js v5 + node-pty |
| Git | simple-git |
| Persistence | electron-store |
| Packaging | electron-builder (NSIS / DMG / AppImage) |
- Node.js 20+
- Python 3.11+ (for node-pty native build)
- Windows: Visual Studio Build Tools with "Desktop development with C++"
- macOS: Xcode Command Line Tools (
xcode-select --install) - Linux:
build-essential,libx11-dev
# Clone the repo git clone https://github.com/pun33th45/helix.git cd helix # Install dependencies and rebuild native modules npm install npm run rebuild # rebuilds node-pty for your Electron version # Generate app icons (requires sharp) npm run icons # Development mode npm run dev # starts Vite + Electron in watch mode # Production build npm run dist # packages for your current platform
Create a .env file for development (never commit this):
VITE_GEMINI_API_KEY=your_key_here
helix/
├── electron/
│ ├── main.js # Electron main process
│ └── preload.js # Context bridge (IPC API surface)
├── src/
│ ├── components/
│ │ ├── ActivityBar/
│ │ ├── AIPanel/ # AI chat, streaming, model picker
│ │ ├── CommandPalette/
│ │ ├── Editor/ # Monaco + diff editor + inline completions
│ │ ├── Onboarding/ # First-launch API key modal
│ │ ├── Settings/
│ │ ├── Sidebar/ # File tree + Git panel
│ │ ├── StatusBar/
│ │ └── Terminal/ # xterm.js multi-tab terminal
│ ├── hooks/
│ │ └── useKeyBindings.js
│ └── store/
│ ├── aiStore.js
│ ├── editorStore.js
│ └── uiStore.js
├── scripts/
│ ├── generate-icons.js
│ └── create-ico.js
├── assets/
│ ├── icon.svg
│ ├── icon.ico # generated
│ └── icon_*.png # generated
├── electron-builder.json
└── vite.config.js
Built by @pun33th45
MIT — see LICENSE for details.