Wave Terminal

Wave Terminal is an open-source, AI-native terminal built by Command Line Inc. and backed by Unusual Ventures. It goes beyond traditional terminal emulators by integrating file previews, a built-in VSCode-like editor, an inline web browser, SSH connection management, and a context-aware AI assistant — all in a single cross-platform desktop application. The project is licensed under Apache 2.0, requires no account or login, and stores all data locally.

What It Is

Wave Terminal is a desktop terminal emulator that combines the core shell experience with a flexible, drag-and-drop workspace of blocks. Each block can be a terminal session, a file editor, a file preview, a web browser, or an AI chat widget. Users can split screens, arrange blocks into dashboards, and switch between local and remote environments without leaving the app. The project is written primarily in Go and is publicly available on GitHub under the Apache License 2.0.

Wave AI: Context-Aware Terminal Assistant

The built-in Wave AI assistant reads terminal output and scrollback, performs file operations with user approval, and integrates directly with the CLI via the wsh ai command. It supports bring-your-own-key (BYOK) access to OpenAI, Claude, Gemini, Azure, and Perplexity, as well as local model inference through Ollama and LM Studio. The README notes that command execution with approval is coming soon, and that AI credits are included during the beta period while the experience is being refined.

Remote Workflow and Durable SSH Sessions

Wave's SSH connection manager supports one-click connections to remote servers and clusters, including WSL. A standout feature is durable SSH sessions: remote terminal sessions survive network interruptions, connection drops, and Wave restarts, with automatic reconnection. Remote file management is handled through the built-in graphical editor (with syntax highlighting and mouse support) and a rich file preview system covering markdown, images, video, PDFs, CSVs, and directories. The wsh file command enables seamless file copying and syncing between local and remote SSH hosts.

Workspace Organization and Customization

Wave's interface is built around a flexible drag-and-drop layout system. Users can organize terminal blocks, editors, web views, and AI assistants into named workspaces and dashboards. Customization options include tab themes, terminal styles, and background images. Custom widgets can be built with HTML and populated with CLI data, and pre-built dashboard layouts can be imported or shared with teammates. Secure secret storage uses native system backends to keep API keys and credentials local and accessible across SSH sessions.

Platform Support and System Requirements

Wave Terminal runs on macOS 11 or later (arm64 and x64), Windows 10 1809 or later (x64), and Linux distributions based on glibc-2.28 or later (including Debian 10, RHEL 8, and Ubuntu 20.04) in both arm64 and x64 variants. Installation options for Linux include Snap, AppImage, .deb, .rpm, .zip, and pacman packages.

Update: Wave Terminal v0.14.5

The latest release is v0.14.5, published on April 16, 2026. The GitHub repository shows active development with the main branch last pushed in late June 2026 and over 21,500 stars. The project publishes a public roadmap and accepts feature requests and contributions via GitHub Issues.