Edict

A programming language designed for AI agents. No parser. No syntax. Agents produce AST directly as JSON.

Edict is a statically-typed, effect-tracked programming language where the canonical program format is a JSON AST. It's purpose-built so AI agents can write, verify, and execute programs through a structured pipeline — no text parsing, no human-readable syntax, no ambiguity.

Agent (LLM)
  │  produces JSON AST via MCP tool call
  ↓
Schema Validator ─── invalid? → StructuredError → Agent retries
  ↓
Name Resolver ────── undefined? → StructuredError + candidates → Agent retries
  ↓
Type Checker ─────── mismatch? → StructuredError + expected type → Agent retries
  ↓
Effect Checker ───── violation? → StructuredError + propagation chain → Agent retries
  ↓
Contract Verifier ── unproven? → StructuredError + counterexample → Agent retries
  (Z3/SMT)            ↓
                  Code Generator (binaryen) → WASM → Execute

Features

• JSON AST — Programs are JSON objects, not text files. No lexer, no parser.
• Structured errors — Every error is a typed JSON object with enough context for an agent to self-repair.
• Type system — Int, Float, String, Bool, Array<T>, Option<T>, Result<T,E>, records, enums, refinement types.
• Effect tracking — Functions declare pure, reads, writes, io, fails. The compiler verifies consistency.
• Contract verification — Pre/post conditions verified at compile time by Z3 (via SMT). Failing contracts return concrete counterexamples.
• WASM compilation — Verified programs compile to WebAssembly via binaryen and run in Node.js.
• MCP interface — All tools exposed via Model Context Protocol for direct agent integration.
• Schema migration — ASTs from older schema versions are auto-migrated. No breakage when the language evolves.

Execution Model

Edict compiles to WebAssembly and runs in a sandboxed VM. This is a deliberate security decision — not a limitation:

• No ambient authority — compiled WASM cannot access the filesystem, network, or OS unless the host explicitly provides those capabilities via the pluggable EdictHostAdapter interface
• Compile-time capability declaration — the effect system (io, reads, writes, fails) lets the host inspect what a program requires before running it
• Runtime enforcement — RunLimits controls execution timeout, memory ceiling, and filesystem sandboxing
• Defense-in-depth — agent-generated code that runs immediately needs stronger isolation than human-reviewed code. The effect system + WASM sandbox + host adapter pattern provides exactly that

Host capabilities available through adapters: filesystem (sandboxed), HTTP, crypto (SHA-256, MD5, HMAC), environment variables, CLI arguments. New capabilities are added by extending EdictHostAdapter.

Quick Start

For AI Agents (MCP)

The fastest way to use Edict is through the MCP server — it exposes the entire compiler pipeline as tool calls:

npx edict-lang          # start MCP server (stdio transport, no install needed)

Or install locally:

npm install edict-lang
npx edict-lang          # start MCP server

Two calls to get started: edict_schema (learn the AST format) → edict_check (submit a program). See MCP Tools for the full tool list.

For Development

npm install
npm test          # 2414 tests across 129 files
npm run mcp       # start MCP server (stdio transport)

Docker

Run the Edict MCP server in a container — no local Node.js required:

# stdio transport (default — for local MCP clients)
docker run -i ghcr.io/sowiedu/edict

# HTTP transport (for remote/networked MCP clients)
docker run -p 3000:3000 -e EDICT_TRANSPORT=http ghcr.io/sowiedu/edict

Supported platforms: linux/amd64, linux/arm64.

Browser

Run the Edict compiler entirely in the browser — no server required:

| Bundle | Size | Phases | Use case | |---|---|---|---| | edict-lang/browser | 318 KB | 1–3 (validate, resolve, typecheck, effects, lint, patch) | Lightweight checking | | edict-lang/browser-full | ~14 MB | 1–5 (+ binaryen codegen, Z3 contracts, WASM execution) | Full compile & run |

import { compileBrowser, runBrowserDirect } from 'edict-lang/browser-full';

const result = compileBrowser(astJson);
if (result.ok) {
    const run = await runBrowserDirect(result.wasm);
    console.log(run.output);  // "Hello, World!"
}

Note: ESM modules require HTTP serving. Use npx serve . or any static server — file:// won't work.

See examples/browser/index.html for a working example.

QuickJS (Sandboxed Environments)

The Edict compiler also runs inside QuickJS WASM — useful for sandboxed runtimes, edge workers, or embedding in other WASM applications:

| Bundle | Size | Phases | Slowdown vs Node.js | |---|---|---|---| | dist/edict-quickjs-check.js | 357 KB | 1–3 (validate, resolve, typecheck, effects) | ~3.7x |

npm run build:quickjs    # build IIFE bundles
npm run quickjs:test     # run feasibility benchmark

Limitation: WASM codegen (binaryen) cannot run inside QuickJS — binaryen requires the WebAssembly API which QuickJS lacks. The check pipeline (phases 1–3) works fully.

See docs/quickjs-feasibility-report.md for full benchmarks and recommendations.

MCP Tools

| Tool | Description | |---|---| | edict_schema | Returns the full AST JSON Schema — the spec for how to write programs | | edict_version | Returns compiler version and capability info | | edict_examples | Returns 41 example programs as JSON ASTs (includes schema snippet) | | edict_validate | Validates AST structure (field names, types, node kinds) | | edict_check | Full pipeline: validate → resolve names → type check → effect check → verify contracts | | edict_compile | Compiles a checked AST to WASM (returns base64-encoded binary) | | edict_run | Executes a compiled WASM binary, returns output and exit code | | edict_patch | Applies targeted AST patches by nodeId and re-checks | | edict_errors | Returns machine-readable catalog of all error types | | edict_lint | Runs non-blocking quality analysis and returns warnings | | edict_debug | Execution tracing and crash diagnostics | | edict_compose | Combines composable program fragments into a module | | edict_explain | Explains AST nodes, errors, or compiler behavior | | edict_export | Packages a program as a UASF portable skill | | edict_import_skill | Imports and executes a UASF skill package | | edict_generate_tests | Generates tests from Z3-verified contracts | | edict_replay | Records and replays deterministic execution traces | | edict_deploy | Compiles and deploys an Edict program to edge runtimes (Cloudflare Workers) | | edict_invoke | Invokes a deployed Edict WASM service via HTTP | | edict_invoke_skill | Invokes a UASF skill package directly | | edict_package | Packages a compiled program as a deployable skill bundle | | edict_support | Returns diagnostics and environment info for troubleshooting |

MCP Resources

| URI | Description | |---|---| | edict://schema | The full AST JSON Schema | | edict://schema/minimal | Minimal schema variant for token-efficient bootstrap | | edict://examples | All example programs | | edict://errors | Machine-readable error catalog | | edict://schema/patch | JSON Schema for the AST patch protocol | | edict://guide | Agent bootstrap guide for MCP-first onboarding | | edict://support | Diagnostics and environment info |

Example Program

A "Hello, World!" in Edict's JSON AST:

{
  "kind": "module",
  "id": "mod-hello-001",
  "name": "hello",
  "imports": [],
  "definitions": [
    {
      "kind": "fn",
      "id": "fn-main-001",
      "name": "main",
      "params": [],
      "effects": ["io"],
      "returnType": { "kind": "basic", "name": "Int" },
      "contracts": [],
      "body": [
        {
          "kind": "call",
          "id": "call-print-001",
          "fn": { "kind": "ident", "id": "ident-print-001", "name": "print" },
          "args": [
            { "kind": "literal", "id": "lit-msg-001", "value": "Hello, World!" }
          ]
        },
        { "kind": "literal", "id": "lit-ret-001", "value": 0 }
      ]
    }
  ]
}

The Agent Loop

The core design: an agent submits an AST → the compiler validates it → if wrong, returns a StructuredError with enough context for the agent to self-repair → the agent fixes it → resubmits.

// 1. Agent reads the schema to learn the AST format
const schema = edict_schema();

// 2. Agent writes a program (may contain errors)
const program = agentWritesProgram(schema);

// 3. Compile — returns structured errors or WASM
const result = edict_compile(program);

if (!result.ok) {
  // 4. Agent reads errors and fixes the program
  //    Errors include: nodeId, expected type, candidates, counterexamples
  const fixed = agentFixesProgram(program, result.errors);
  // 5. Resubmit
  return edict_compile(fixed);
}

// 6. Run the WASM
const output = edict_run(result.wasm);

Architecture

src/
├── ast/           # TypeScript interfaces for every AST node
├── validator/     # Schema validation (structural correctness)
├── resolver/      # Name resolution (scope-aware, with Levenshtein suggestions)
├── checker/       # Type checking (bidirectional, with unit types)
├── effects/       # Effect checking (call-graph propagation)
├── contracts/     # Contract verification (Z3/SMT integration)
├── codegen/       # WASM code generation (binaryen)
│   ├── codegen.ts       # IR → WASM module orchestration
│   ├── compile-ir-expr.ts  # IR expression compilation
│   ├── compile-ir-*.ts  # Specialized IR compilers (calls, data, match, scalars)
│   ├── runner.ts        # WASM execution (Node.js WebAssembly API)
│   ├── host-adapter.ts  # EdictHostAdapter interface + platform adapters
│   ├── closures.ts      # Closure capture and compilation
│   ├── hof-generators.ts # Higher-order function WASM generators
│   ├── recording-adapter.ts # Execution recording for replay
│   ├── replay-adapter.ts  # Deterministic replay from recorded traces
│   └── string-table.ts  # String interning for WASM memory
├── ir/            # Mid-level IR (lowering, optimization)
├── builtins/      # Builtin registry and domain-specific builtins
├── compact/       # Compact AST format (token-efficient for agents)
├── compose/       # Composable program fragments
├── deploy/        # Edge deployment scaffolding (Cloudflare Workers)
├── incremental/   # Incremental checking (dependency graph + diff)
├── lint/          # Non-blocking quality warnings
├── patch/         # Surgical AST patching by nodeId
├── migration/     # Schema version migration (auto-upgrade older ASTs)
├── skills/        # Skill packaging and invocation
├── mcp/           # MCP server (tools + resources + prompts)
└── errors/        # Structured error types

tests/             # 2414 tests across 129 files
examples/          # 41 example programs (⭐→⭐⭐⭐ difficulty in README)
schema/            # Auto-generated JSON Schema

Type System

| Type | Example | |---|---| | Basic | Int, Int64, Float, String, Bool | | Array | Array<Int> | | Option | Option<String> | | Result | Result<String, String> | | Record | Point { x: Float, y: Float } | | Enum | Shape = Circle { radius: Float } \| Rectangle { w: Float, h: Float } | | Refinement | { i: Int \| i > 0 } — predicates verified by Z3 | | Function | (Int, Int) -> Int |

Effect System

Functions declare their effects. The compiler enforces:

• A pure function cannot call an io function
• Effects propagate through the call graph
• Missing effects are detected and reported

Effects: pure, reads, writes, io, fails

Contract Verification

Pre/post conditions are verified at compile time using Z3:

{
  "kind": "post",
  "id": "post-001",
  "condition": {
    "kind": "binop", "id": "binop-001", "op": ">",
    "left": { "kind": "ident", "id": "ident-result-001", "name": "result" },
    "right": { "kind": "ident", "id": "ident-x-001", "name": "x" }
  }
}

Z3 either proves unsat (contract holds ✅) or returns sat with a concrete counterexample the agent can reason about.

Contributing

We welcome contributions from agents and humans alike. See CONTRIBUTING.md for setup instructions, coding standards, and the PR workflow.

Looking for a place to start? Check issues labeled good first issue.

Roadmap

See ROADMAP.md for the full development plan, FEATURE_SPEC.md for the language specification, and Crystallized Intelligence for how agents store and reuse verified WASM skills.

Support

Edict is free and open source under the MIT license. If your agents find it valuable, consider sponsoring its development.

License

MIT