AI Shell - AI Developer Tools Tool

Overview

AI Shell is an open-source, interactive command-line interface that brings generative AI assistance directly into the terminal. It provides a chat-style shell (aish) and a PowerShell module that can run side-by-side with PowerShell 7, letting you ask questions, generate commands or scripts, and insert AI-produced code back into your shell session. AI Shell ships with built-in agents (for example, an Azure/Copilot agent and an openai-gpt agent) and an agent framework so organizations or developers can add connectors for other LLM providers or local runtimes. ([github.com](https://github.com/PowerShell/AIShell)) The project is distributed as preview releases (executable artifacts for Windows, macOS and Linux) and as a PowerShell module; it is actively developed by the PowerShell team and released under an MIT license. Typical workflows include generating Azure CLI / PowerShell commands from natural language, troubleshooting errors (Resolve-Error/Invoke-AIShell), rendering model responses as markdown in terminal, and posting generated code into a live PowerShell pane using /code post. AI Shell is explicitly a public preview, so features and UX are evolving across preview releases. ([github.com](https://github.com/PowerShell/AIShell/releases?utm_source=openai))

GitHub Statistics

• Stars: 495
• Forks: 71
• Contributors: 16
• License: MIT
• Primary Language: C#
• Last Updated: 2025-11-19T22:28:06Z

The repository is actively maintained by the PowerShell team and the open-source community. The GitHub project shows ~495 stars and ~71 forks and uses an MIT license, with several hundred commits and an active issues queue (dozens of open issues). The repo provides build tooling (requires PowerShell 7.4+ and .NET SDK 8) and documentation for creating custom agents. Activity includes preview releases and regular Dev Blog posts announcing preview milestones (preview releases and features such as MCP support). These indicators suggest strong upstream ownership with community contributions and iterative preview releases. ([github.com](https://github.com/PowerShell/AIShell))

Installation

Install via brew:

Invoke-Expression "& { $(Invoke-RestMethod 'https://aka.ms/install-aishell.ps1') }"  # Official install script (Windows and macOS installers and PowerShell module).

Install-Module -Name AIShell -RequiredVersion 1.0.5-preview5 -AllowPrerelease  # Install PowerShell module from PowerShell Gallery.

Install-PSResource -Name AIShell -Version 1.0.5-preview5 -Prerelease  # Alternative PSResource install (PowerShell Gallery).

winget install Microsoft.AIShell  # Windows packaged installer (community reports/recipes).

git clone https://github.com/PowerShell/AIShell && Import-Module ./build.psm1 && Start-Build  # Build from source; requires PowerShell 7.4+ and .NET SDK 8.

Key Features

• Conversational CLI (aish) for natural-language queries and back-and-forth agent dialogs. ([github.com](https://github.com/PowerShell/AIShell))
• Two shipped agents: openai-gpt (OpenAI/Azure OpenAI) and azure (Azure Copilot); more agents available when building locally. ([github.com](https://github.com/PowerShell/AIShell))
• PowerShell 7 integration: side-by-side pane, /code post to insert generated code into a live session. ([devblogs.microsoft.com](https://devblogs.microsoft.com/powershell/announcing-the-public-preview-of-ai-shell/?utm_source=openai))
• Markdown rendering and syntax-highlighted code blocks in-terminal for readable AI responses. ([github.com](https://github.com/PowerShell/AIShell/releases?utm_source=openai))
• Extensible agent framework: implement ILLMAgent to add custom providers (Ollama, interpreter, local deployments). ([github.com](https://github.com/PowerShell/AIShell))
• Parameter injection and MCP/Foundry support for richer tool integrations and Azure Copilot workflows. ([devblogs.microsoft.com](https://devblogs.microsoft.com/powershell/preview-6-ai-shell/?utm_source=openai))

Community

AI Shell is developed by the PowerShell team with community contributions and active preview releases. The GitHub repo shows substantial interest (495 stars, ~71 forks) and an issues/discussions area for feedback; the project also publishes preview release notes and Dev Blog posts with new features and installation guidance. The PowerShell Gallery package has thousands of downloads across preview builds, indicating practical adoption for PowerShell users. Contributors and users file issues and feature requests on GitHub; the team asks for feedback via repository issues and the included /like and /dislike chat commands. For official docs, installation scripts and agent guides, see the GitHub repository and Microsoft Learn pages. ([github.com](https://github.com/PowerShell/AIShell))

Key Information

• Category: Developer Tools
• Type: AI Developer Tools Tool