🧑‍💻 Pi Pair Programmer

Background code review for Pi and OMP.

Why · Install · Use · How it works

🤔 Why

Coding with AI adds entropy to a codebase. Agents optimize for local correctness instead of thinking about the global system. They repeat code and reinvent the wheel.

Turn-by-turn static analysis is necessary but not sufficient. Code review happens too late in the code production pipeline.

This extension lets you run multiple highly specialized reviewers, each focused on a specific concern, to catch issues static analysis cannot detect, as soon as code is generated. Without bloating the context window, thanks to a Jev-based filter that removes inherited and duplicate findings.

📦 Install

Install the published npm package.

pi install npm:pi-pair-programmer

omp install pi-pair-programmer

Restart Pi or OMP after installation to load the extension.

🔑 For the Jev filter, set your TypeSafe API key before starting Pi or OMP:

export TYPESAFE_API_KEY="your-api-key"

[!NOTE] Without it, reviews still run, but only exact duplicate findings are filtered.

🧭 Use

Reviews are on by default. After each successful write or edit, reviewers run in the background. The coding agent must accept or reject each finding with a reason before continuing with other tools. Only accepted findings appear in your transcript.

| Command | Action | | ------------------ | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | /pair-programmer | Toggle reviews. | | /pair-clear | Cancel reviews and clear all findings. | | /pair-stats | View review activity, findings, tokens, and estimated costs on demand; missing usage stays unknown. |

The default reviewer uses your current model and asks: “Does it add entropy?” To change the prompt, model, or files reviewed, create pair-programmer.reviewers.json in your working directory:

{
  "reviewers": [
    {
      "model": "current",
      "prompt": "Does this code add entropy?",
      "include": ["**/*.dart"],
      "exclude": ["**/*.g.dart", "**/*_test.dart"]
    },
    {
      "model": "current",
      "prompt": "Does this code reinvent the wheel instead of reusing code or a library?",
      "include": ["**/*.dart"],
      "exclude": ["**/*.g.dart", "**/*_test.dart"]
    }
  ]
}

Use current or a provider/model identifier. File patterns are relative to your working directory; exclusions take precedence. Add entries for more reviewers.

[!TIP] Diagnostics stay in files, never the terminal: OMP uses its native logs; Pi uses ~/.pi/agent/logs/pair-programmer/ (or $PI_CODING_AGENT_DIR/logs/pair-programmer/).

🔍 How it works

Released under the MIT License · Contributing · Security

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