Clean handoffs for coding agents
AI agents should know where the last one stopped.
Kontinuo is a local-first MCP server and CLI for verifiable handoffs between AI coding agents. It turns agent sessions and workspace state into checkpoints, then serves them over MCP so the next tool can keep going.
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MCP tools for reading, writing, capturing, importing, and resolving handoffs.
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Models run by Kontinuo. The agent reasons; Kontinuo records and serves state.
ACP
Protocol-level capture when agents run through an Agent Client Protocol editor path.
The gap
Agents do the work. Session boundaries erase the map.
Every agent keeps session history in a different place and shape.
Resuming means re-explaining context or hunting through old transcripts.
The next agent can repeat finished work, miss parked work, or trust stale state.
How it works
A handoff note good enough for a skeptical agent.
Kontinuo does not run agents, call models, or merge code. It never sends session data off the machine. It is the small local layer that keeps the handoff honest.
Capture
Transcript intent plus workspace facts
Kontinuo reads supported agent sessions, Agent Client Protocol streams, and git workspace state, then writes one normalized checkpoint for the current repo lane.
Verify
A checkpoint you can verify safely
Each handoff records evidence, git HEAD, changed files, dirty state, and a workspace fingerprint so a reader can spot stale state before acting.
Resume
Served over MCP, readable by humans
The next MCP-capable agent calls handoff_read and gets the goal, stopping point, deferred work, verification notes, and the exact next action.
Local install
Install Kontinuo
Kontinuo installs as a local CLI and MCP server for AI coding agent handoffs.
Restart or reload your agent host so it starts the Kontinuo MCP server.
Install the CLI
Install the single Kontinuo binary locally.
curl -fsSL https://kontinuo.dev/install | sh Register Claude Code MCP
Register the MCP server with your agent host for this workspace.
kontinuo setup --host claude --cwd . --config .mcp.json --store ./.kontinuo Verify the local store
Confirm the local store is reachable before handing work off.
kontinuo log --cwd . CLI capability
CLI capability
The CLI handles setup, capture, inspection, and verification. The MCP server keeps the agent in flow: read the last checkpoint, work from it, then write the next one back.
$ kontinuo version
out kontinuo dev
$ kontinuo log --cwd .
out No Kontinuo checkpoints found.
$ kontinuo setup --host claude --cwd . --config .mcp.json --store ./.kontinuo
out wrote MCP config for claude: /repo/.mcp.json
out store: /repo/.kontinuo
out next: restart or reload your agent so it starts the Kontinuo MCP server
ACP support
Capture the handoff at the protocol layer.
Agent Client Protocol support lets Kontinuo observe editor-to-agent traffic directly. That means cleaner intent, fewer brittle transcript guesses, and a handoff the next agent sees before it starts work.
kontinuo acp --cwd . --inject compact -- codex
Protocol-level capture
ACP support observes the Agent Client Protocol stream, so Kontinuo can capture clear intent without betting the handoff on private transcript layouts.
Context at the right moment
When you run an agent through Kontinuo, opt-in context injection can place a compact handoff into the first prompt before the agent starts guessing.
Less brittle than scraping alone
Transcript adapters still help, but ACP gives editors and agents a cleaner path: the handoff travels through the protocol that already connects them.
The standard
Built to degrade, not break.
If a transcript adapter misses, Kontinuo falls back to workspace-only capture. If ACP is available, Kontinuo can observe protocol signals instead of leaning on private transcript layouts. If work is deferred, it stays parked.
FAQ
Plain answers for agent handoffs.
What is Kontinuo?
Kontinuo is a local-first MCP server and CLI for verifiable handoffs between AI coding agents. It creates checkpoints from agent sessions and workspace state so another tool can resume from a clear stopping point.
How does Kontinuo help AI coding agents resume work?
Kontinuo records the goal, exact stopping point, next action, verification evidence, changed files, and workspace fingerprint. The next MCP-capable agent reads that checkpoint before it starts work.
What is an MCP handoff?
An MCP handoff is a checkpoint served through the Model Context Protocol. Kontinuo exposes tools such as handoff_read and handoff_write so agents can read, write, capture, import, and resolve handoffs without parsing another agent's private state.
Does Kontinuo run agents or call models?
No. Kontinuo does not run agents, call models, or merge code. The agent reasons and edits; Kontinuo records and serves the local handoff state.
Does Kontinuo send session data off-machine?
No. Kontinuo keeps checkpoints and session-derived state local. The default store lives outside the repo, and the MCP server reads from that local store.
Which agent hosts does Kontinuo support?
Kontinuo supports Claude Code, Cursor, Antigravity, Codex, oh-my-pi (OMP), ACP-capable editors, and generic MCP hosts that can start a local stdio server. Transcript adapters cover known host formats, while ACP support gives protocol-level capture where the editor path supports it.
What does ACP support add?
ACP support lets Kontinuo observe Agent Client Protocol traffic instead of relying only on transcript scraping. That gives cleaner intent capture and lets a compact handoff reach the first prompt before an agent starts guessing.
Start local
Leave better notes for the next agent.
Add the MCP server to your agent host and let every session end with a checkpoint another tool can trust.