$ arqzero --about
◆ Engineering, not vibes.
The terminal that
codes back.
A coding agent built around engineering discipline. Four-model routing. Verification gates that refuse to claim done before tests pass. Per-project session memory. Bring your own model, or use ours.
$ arqzero
◆ ArqZero v2.1.0-beta
$ arqzero --how-it-works
01
You describe the task
"Fix the auth bug" or "refactor the API layer" or "add tests for the payment module"
02
Methodology kicks in
Structured capabilities match your task. TDD, debugging, security review, refactor protocols — each with multi-step procedures, not freestyle.
03
Verification gates enforce
ArqZero won't claim done until tests pass. Mandatory completion checks. No hallucinated success.
$ arqzero --features
●
Verification gates
Every task ends with a check — tests run, build passes, no half-done work shipped. Refuses to claim done if anything fails.
●
Per-project sessions
Conversations save locally per project. Resume mid-task. Cross-session memory persists between restarts.
●
BYOK or managed
Anthropic, OpenAI, OpenRouter, Fireworks, Ollama, or your own OpenAI-compatible proxy. Or sign in for ArqZero AI — no key needed.
●
Subagent dispatch
Up to seven parallel sub-tasks. Reviews, refactors, multi-file edits done concurrently with their own context budgets.
●
Slash commands + hooks
Session control, model switching, plugin loading, custom slash commands. Hook into pre/post tool events for guardrails.
●
Plugins + MCP
Load plugin manifests for extra tools, commands, agents. Native MCP server adapter for the broader ecosystem.
$ arqzero --models
▐ ENSO ▌
Default
Balanced reasoning and speed. The day-to-day driver.
▐ PRIMUS ▌
Reasoning
Architectural decisions, multi-step planning, hard bugs.
▐ SHIORI ▌
Long context
Multi-file refactors, large codebase navigation.
▐ FLARE ▌
Fast
Quick edits, lookups, single-file changes.
Auto-routes by task. Override with /model any time.
$ arqzero --trust
●
Your code stays local
Sessions, history, and memory all live in your home directory. The agent does not upload, mirror, or retain your source files on any server.
●
Encrypted credentials
API keys and auth tokens are stored encrypted at rest, scoped to your account, and never logged. Removable any time.
●
Honest about telemetry
BYOK mode is fully offline. With managed inference, only opaque token counts are sent for billing — no prompts, no code, no analytics beacons.
$ arqzero --compare
| Feature | ArqZero | Claude Code | Cursor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Structured methodologies | Yes | No | No |
| Verification gates | Yes | No | No |
| Any LLM provider | Yes | Claude only | OpenAI/Claude |
| BYOK + free tier | Yes | No | No |
| Price | $12/mo + BYOK | $20-200/mo | $20/mo |
| Subagents | 7 parallel | Yes | No |
| Terminal-native | Yes | Yes | No (IDE) |
$ arqzero --install
npm i -g arqzero@betaFree tier. No account required. 30 seconds to start.