Show HN: Modo – I built an open-source alternative to Kiro, Cursor, and Windsurf

The open-source AI IDE that plans before it codes.

MIT License · Quick Start · What Modo Adds · Contributing

I wanted a small feature in an AI coding tool. Couldn't find a way to suggest it. So I asked myself: how hard is it to actually build something like Kiro, Cursor, or Windsurf?

Turns out — not as hard as you'd think. Starting from the Void editor (itself a fork of VS Code), I got to roughly 60–70% of what those tools offer in a short stretch of building. It was genuinely fun.

This is Modo. A standalone desktop IDE where prompts become structured plans before they become code. Open source, MIT licensed, yours to hack on.

Everything below was built on top of Void's existing AI chat, inline edit (Cmd+K), autocomplete, multi-provider LLM support, tool use, and MCP integration. Here's what's new:

Most AI tools go prompt → code. Modo goes prompt → requirements → design → tasks → code.

A spec lives in .modo/specs/<name>/ as three markdown files:

.modo/specs/auth-flow/
├── requirements.md # user stories, acceptance criteria
├── design.md # architecture, components, data models
└── tasks.md # checklist of implementation steps

Create one with Cmd+Shift+S or by picking Spec mode in the session picker. Choose feature or bugfix, then requirements-first or design-first workflow. The agent fills each document, you review, then it executes tasks one by one — marking them done as it goes.

Tasks persist to disk. Close the IDE, come back, pick up where you left off.

Open any tasks.md and each pending task gets a clickable "▶ Run Task" button inline. A "Run All Pending Tasks" button appears at the top. Running tasks show a spinner, completed ones show a checkmark. The agent marks - [ ] → - [~] → - [x] as it works.

Markdown documents in .modo/steering/ that inject project rules into every AI interaction — no need to repeat yourself.

---
inclusion: always
---
# Project Rules
- Use TypeScript strict mode
- All endpoints need input validation

Three inclusion modes: always, fileMatch, or manual.

JSON configs in .modo/hooks/ that automate actions around the agent lifecycle. Supports 10 event types like fileEdited, promptSubmit, and preTaskExecution.

A status bar pill that switches between Autopilot (agent acts autonomously) and Supervised (agent pauses for approval). Wired directly to auto-approve settings for edits, terminal commands, and MCP tools.

Multiple chat sessions as tabs. Each has its own thread, context, and history. Open new ones, close old ones, or run them all at once.

Spawn parallel agents for independent subtasks. Each gets its own thread and tool access. Track status, cancel running tasks, or clear completed ones.

Installable knowledge packages that bundle documentation, steering files, and MCP configs. Built-in powers for TypeScript, React, Testing, API Design, and Docker.

Modo wouldn't exist without these projects: Void (AI infrastructure) and VS Code (Editor core).

git clone https://github.com/modoeditor/modo.git
cd modo
npm install
npm run buildreact
npm run watch
./scripts/code.sh