Kilo Code

Arbytra connects to Kilo Code as a provider, giving you access to multiple models through a single API key.

Prerequisites

Kilo Code VS Code extension or CLI
An Arbytra API key — your key starts with ak_live_ (production) or ak_test_ (testing)

Install Kilo Code

Open Extensions in VS Code (Cmd+Shift+X on macOS, Ctrl+Shift+X on Windows/Linux), search “Kilo Code”, and install.

Install the CLI

Install via npm:

npm install -g @kilocode/cli

Or via Homebrew (macOS):

brew install Kilo-Org/tap/kilo

Confirm the installation:

kilo --version

Set your API key

Export your API key in your shell:

export ARBYTRA_API_KEY="ak_live_..."

To persist across sessions, add the same line to ~/.zshrc or ~/.bashrc, then either run source ~/.zshrc (or source ~/.bashrc) or open a new terminal.

Non-interactive shells (CI, Codespaces bash -c, scripts) don’t source ~/.bashrc. For those, export ARBYTRA_API_KEY directly in the environment or source the file explicitly at the top of your script.

Sanity-check the key

Confirm the key works before installing anything else:

curl -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}\n" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $ARBYTRA_API_KEY" \
  https://api.arbytra.com/v1/me

Expected: 200. If you get 401, the key is missing, mistyped, or revoked.

Add Arbytra as a provider

VS Code

Open Kilo Code settings (gear icon in the Kilo Code panel).
Go to the Providers tab.
Click Custom provider.
Fill in:
- Provider ID: arbytra
- Display name: Arbytra
- Base URL: https://api.arbytra.com/v1
- API key: your ak_live_... key
Models auto-populate. Select a model.
Click Submit.

CLI

No registration step is needed — kilo run resolves any arbytra/<model> ID from your API key. Skip to Verify.

If arbytra/* models aren't found (CLI fallback)

If kilo run --model arbytra/<id> returns “model not found” (rare; usually means Kilo’s registry cache didn’t refresh), define the provider locally in a kilo.json at your project root:

{
  "$schema": "https://app.kilo.ai/config.json",
  "model": "arbytra/claude-sonnet-4-6",
  "provider": {
    "arbytra": {
      "env": ["ARBYTRA_API_KEY"],
      "models": {
        "claude-sonnet-4-6": {
          "name": "Claude Sonnet 4.6",
          "reasoning": true,
          "tool_call": true,
          "limit": { "context": 200000, "output": 16384 }
        }
      },
      "options": {
        "baseURL": "https://api.arbytra.com/v1"
      }
    }
  }
}

This overrides Kilo’s provider registry with a local definition.

Verify

VS Code: Start a chat in the Kilo Code panel and send a message. You should see a response from the model you selected. CLI:

kilo run "Say exactly: setup-ok" --model arbytra/claude-sonnet-4-6

Expected output: setup-ok.

First run only: Kilo performs a one-time SQLite migration (Performing one time database migration, may take a few minutes...). The first call can take up to a minute. Subsequent calls return in seconds.

Set default model

To avoid passing --model on every run, create a kilo.json at your project root:

{
  "$schema": "https://app.kilo.ai/config.json",
  "model": "arbytra/claude-sonnet-4-6"
}

Place it at ~/.config/kilo/kilo.json for a global default instead. A project-root config takes precedence. VS Code users set their default model in the model picker (top of the Kilo Code panel).

Use different models

Pass any registered model with the --model flag:

kilo run "Summarize this repo" --model arbytra/deepseek-v4-flash
kilo run "Review my code" --model arbytra/gemini-2.5-pro

VS Code: switch models in the model picker. These models are available through Arbytra:

Model	Author	Context
`claude-sonnet-4-6`	Anthropic	1M
`claude-opus-4-6`	Anthropic	1M
`claude-opus-4-7`	Anthropic	1M
`deepseek-v4-flash`	DeepSeek	1M
`deepseek-v4-pro`	DeepSeek	1M
`gemini-2.5-flash`	Google	1M
`gemini-2.5-pro`	Google	1M
`gemini-3.1-pro-preview`	Google	1M
`glm-5.1`	Z.AI	200K
`grok-4.3`	xAI	1M
`kimi-k2.5`	Moonshot	262K
`kimi-k2.6`	Moonshot	262K
`minimax-m2-7`	MiniMax	205K
`minimax-m2-7-highspeed`	MiniMax	205K
`qwen-3.6-plus`	Alibaba	1M

Known model quirks on Kilo

gemini-2.5-flash on tool-call prompts: returns an empty response (no tool invocation, no text). Use gemini-2.5-pro or gemini-3.1-pro-preview for tool-calling workflows on the Gemini family.
gemini-2.5-pro on arithmetic: can produce wrong answers when asked for an exact number without showing work. Prompt it to use a tool or show its reasoning for math-critical tasks.

To list every model available on your key (not only the 15 above):

curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ARBYTRA_API_KEY" \
  https://api.arbytra.com/v1/models | jq '.data[].id'

Add unregistered models (advanced)

If you need a model that isn’t in the 15 above and arbytra/<id> doesn’t resolve, define it locally in kilo.json:

{
  "$schema": "https://app.kilo.ai/config.json",
  "model": "arbytra/deepseek-v3.2",
  "provider": {
    "arbytra": {
      "env": ["ARBYTRA_API_KEY"],
      "models": {
        "deepseek-v3.2": {
          "name": "DeepSeek V3.2",
          "reasoning": true,
          "tool_call": true,
          "limit": { "context": 163840, "output": 8192 }
        }
      },
      "options": {
        "baseURL": "https://api.arbytra.com/v1"
      }
    }
  }
}

Browse model capabilities via the directory API to fill in the model definition fields. VS Code custom provider auto-fetches all models from the API, so this section applies to CLI users only.

Control routing

Configure routing in the Arbytra dashboard. See routing options for details.

Uninstall

VS Code: Remove the Arbytra custom provider from Settings > Providers. Uninstall the Kilo Code extension. CLI: Remove ARBYTRA_API_KEY from your shell profile (~/.zshrc or ~/.bashrc). If you created a kilo.json, remove the arbytra-related lines or delete the file.

Troubleshoot

Symptom	Cause	Fix
`Error: API key is invalid.` or `Error: Model not found: arbytra/<model>.`	`ARBYTRA_API_KEY` missing in this shell, or revoked	Run `echo $ARBYTRA_API_KEY`. If empty, export it. If set, verify at `https://api.arbytra.com/v1/me` (expect HTTP 200)
No models in custom provider dialog (VS Code)	Base URL wrong or API unreachable	Use exactly `https://api.arbytra.com/v1`. Enter the API key first — auto-detection requires both
Model not found (404)	Wrong model ID format	VS Code: bare IDs (`claude-sonnet-4-6`). CLI: `arbytra/` prefix (`arbytra/claude-sonnet-4-6`)
`arbytra/*` models not resolved (CLI)	Provider registry cache hasn’t refreshed	Add a provider block to `kilo.json` (see “If arbytra/* models aren’t found”)
`kilo.json` model field is ignored	Sibling `opencode.json` overrides it (Kilo reads both since it’s an opencode fork), or `~/.config/kilo/kilo.json` is loaded after the project file	Check `./kilo.json`, `./opencode.json` (if present), and `~/.config/kilo/kilo.json` — keep them in sync or remove the ones you don’t use
`Performing one time database migration...` on first run	Kilo’s one-time SQLite migration	Wait — typically completes in under a minute. Only happens on the very first call
`kilo run` returns exit code 0 even when output starts with `Error:`	Kilo CLI doesn’t propagate failures via exit code	For CI: grep stdout/stderr for `^Error:`, or check for a non-empty `text` event in `--format json` output. Don’t rely on `$?`
`gemini-2.5-flash` returns nothing on a tool-using prompt	Known Kilo host-side integration quirk	Use `gemini-2.5-pro` or `gemini-3.1-pro-preview` for tool calls

Get Started

Guides

Response API

Frameworks

Integrations

Specifications

Platform

Changelog

Prerequisites

Install Kilo Code

Set your API key

Sanity-check the key

Add Arbytra as a provider

VS Code

CLI

Verify

Set default model

Use different models

Known model quirks on Kilo

Add unregistered models (advanced)

Control routing

Uninstall

Troubleshoot

​Prerequisites

​Install Kilo Code

​Set your API key

​Sanity-check the key

​Add Arbytra as a provider

​VS Code

​CLI

​Verify

​Set default model

​Use different models

​Known model quirks on Kilo

​Add unregistered models (advanced)

​Control routing

​Uninstall

​Troubleshoot

Prerequisites

Install Kilo Code

Set your API key

Sanity-check the key

Add Arbytra as a provider

VS Code

CLI

Verify

Set default model

Use different models

Known model quirks on Kilo

Add unregistered models (advanced)

Control routing

Uninstall

Troubleshoot