Sweet CLI

Sweet CLI is a fast, terminal-first AI coding assistant that runs a local Python agent and streams results back to your shell. It’s optimized for real-world software engineering tasks: search, edit, run, commit, and iterate quickly.

Key features

• Starts a local Python agent in a per-user virtualenv and streams output live
• Caches the agent bundle under ~/.sweet/agent and auto-updates from your billing host
• First-class project/session handling; resume where you left off
• Sensible defaults with safe production guardrails
• Supports multiple providers, including DeepSeek and OpenRouter

Requirements

• Node.js >= 18
• Python 3.8+ available on PATH (the CLI will create a venv under ~/.sweet/agent/.sweetvenv)

Install

npm i -g @sweet-cli/sweet

Verify:

sweet --version
sweet --help

Quick start

# Start the agent (DeepSeek by default)
sweet start "Analyze my repo and propose a refactor plan"

During the first run, Sweet will:

• Seed (or refresh) the agent cache in ~/.sweet/agent
• Create a Python virtualenv and install requirements
• Launch the agent and stream results in your current directory

Commands

start

sweet start [message...] [options]

Options:

• -p, --provider <provider>: deepseek (default) | openrouter | nebius
• -m, --model <model>: override model name
• --resume-last: resume the most recent session
• --session <id>: resume a specific session by ID

init

sweet init

Creates a minimal SWEET.md guidance file in the current directory.

login

sweet login --api-base <url>

Signs in to your billing host and saves a token to ~/.sweet/config.json.

sessions

sweet sessions

Lists available sessions (and ensures the agent venv exists locally).

Providers and models

DeepSeek (default)

No extra setup needed when using the relay (billing host). If you want to use a direct provider API key locally (not recommended), set SWEET_ALLOW_CLIENT_KEYS=true and export the provider key (e.g., DEEPSEEK_API_KEY).

OpenRouter (DeepSeek v3.1 via OpenRouter)

You can run the agent via OpenRouter using your own key. The agent uses the OpenAI SDK interface for OpenRouter, so prefer OPENAI_API_KEY for compatibility.

One‑shot example (inline env):

OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-or-v1-... SWEET_ALLOW_CLIENT_KEYS=true \
  sweet start -p openrouter -m deepseek/deepseek-chat-v3.1

Or export then run:

export OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-or-v1-...
export SWEET_ALLOW_CLIENT_KEYS=true
sweet start -p openrouter -m deepseek/deepseek-chat-v3.1

Notes:

• Free tier: use -m deepseek/deepseek-chat-v3.1:free
• The CLI only forwards provider keys to the agent if SWEET_ALLOW_CLIENT_KEYS=true. Without this flag, keys remain unset on the agent side.

Environment variables

• SWEET_BILLING_API: Base URL of billing/relay server (e.g., https://billing.sweetcli.com)
• SWEET_BILLING_TOKEN: Saved after sweet login; used to authenticate with billing/relay
• SWEET_RELAY_API: Relay API base for model calls (usually derived from billing API)
• SWEET_AGENT_BASE_URL: Override where the agent bundle (sweet-agent.tgz) is fetched
• SWEET_AGENT_CACHE_ROOT: Override cache path (default ~/.sweet/agent)
• SWEET_MINIMAL_DEPS=1: Install a slim Python requirements set to save disk
• SWEET_ALLOW_CLIENT_KEYS=true: Allow forwarding provider keys into the agent process
• Provider keys (only respected when SWEET_ALLOW_CLIENT_KEYS=true):
  • OPENAI_API_KEY (recommended for OpenRouter)
  • DEEPSEEK_API_KEY (direct DeepSeek usage)
  • SERPER_API_KEY (optional search provider)

Agent bundle and cache

• The CLI installs or refreshes the agent in ~/.sweet/agent and executes it from there.
• By default it downloads sweet-agent.tgz from the configured billing host with cache-busting.
• Override bundle source:

SWEET_AGENT_BASE_URL=https://your-host.example sweet start

Local development source

You can force the CLI to use your local agent source (this repo) instead of downloading a bundle:

SWEET_AGENT_LOCAL_DIR=/absolute/path/to/sweagent sweet start

This will copy your local files into ~/.sweet/agent on each run and execute from there.

Sessions and project directory

• The agent runs in your current working directory by default; Sweet sets SWEET_PROJECT_DIR internally.
• Use --resume-last or --session <id> to continue prior work.

Insufficient balance behavior

• On start: the CLI will prompt you to add credits and wait for Enter.
• Mid‑run: the agent auto‑pauses when balance is insufficient, shows the billing URL, and waits for you to press Enter after adding credits. Your context is preserved.

Troubleshooting

• “request entity too large” when sending long payloads: reduce message size or let the agent condense automatically; ensure the billing host allows larger bodies if needed.
• Virtualenv problems on first run: re-run; or set SWEET_MINIMAL_DEPS=1 for slim deps.
• Force-refresh agent cache:

rm -rf ~/.sweet/agent && sweet start

• Override bundle host for testing:

SWEET_AGENT_BASE_URL=https://<your-host> sweet start

Uninstall

npm uninstall -g @sweet-cli/sweet
rm -rf ~/.sweet/agent ~/.sweet/config.json

Security notes

• Provider keys are not forwarded to the agent unless you explicitly set SWEET_ALLOW_CLIENT_KEYS=true.
• Billing tokens are stored in ~/.sweet/config.json.

For support or feature requests, open an issue or reach out via your billing portal.