Install W1
Five surfaces, one engine. Pick the one you already work in — your account and your threads follow you across all of them.
W1 is free during beta on every platform below. You will need a W1 account — the app opens a browser sign-in the first time you run it — and you will never be asked for a provider API key.
Pick a platform#
A desktop workspace for Apple silicon Macs.
- Requirements: macOS 12 or later, Apple silicon (M1 and later)
- Updates: built in — W1 updates itself
Download for macOS, open the disk image, and drag W1 into Applications. Builds are signed and notarised, so macOS opens them without a Gatekeeper detour.
The same workspace for 64-bit Windows, tested on a standard laptop at 125% display scaling.
- Requirements: Windows 10 or later, 64-bit
- Updates: built in — W1 updates itself
Download for Windows and run the installer.
Shipped as a portable AppImage. No installer, no package manager.
chmod +x W1-*.AppImage
./W1-*.AppImage- Requirements: x86_64
- Format: AppImage
The same engine inside Visual Studio Code, in a side panel or a full editor tab. Your editor, extensions and terminal stay exactly where they are.
Install W1 from the Visual Studio Marketplace, then run W1: Sign In from the command palette. Updates arrive through the Marketplace like any other extension. The VS Code page has the full command list.
The same runtime with no editor or app in the way.
npm i -g @w1-lab/cli@latest
w1 login
w1 .w1 login opens the hosted sign-in page in your browser — you never paste a credential into the terminal. The CLI reference has every flag.
What happens the first time#
- Sign in
W1 opens a secure browser sign-in. Finish it in the browser, then come back to the app — the success page tells you when. Your model credentials are hosted by W1; no provider API key is stored on your computer.
- Open a project
Select a local folder. That folder is the boundary: W1 can inspect and change that project, and only that project, through the access mode shown in the app. See Projects and threads.
- Describe the outcome
Say what you want finished, in plain language. W1 plans the work when the task needs planning, does it, runs the checks, and keeps every step visible in the thread. See Your first task.
Keeping W1 up to date#
| Surface | How updates arrive |
|---|---|
| Desktop (macOS, Windows, Linux) | Built in. W1 checks for a new release and updates itself. |
| VS Code | Through the Visual Studio Marketplace, or W1: Check for Updates. |
| CLI | npm i -g @w1-lab/cli@latest |
Beta software makes mistakes.
Review important changes before you rely on them, keep source control or a backup, and do not give W1 access to secrets a task does not need. Rewind can put files back, but it is a safety net, not a substitute for a backup.
If the install does not work#
If an update fails, keep the version you have installed and send both version numbers to support. Sign-in trouble, a stuck first run and failed updates each have a section in Troubleshooting.