You build an IKON app in IKON Studio by saying what the app should do. Studio plans the app, builds it, checks that it works and puts it online. All you need is a browser and an IKON account.

Build in IKON Studio

Open IKON Studio, sign in and describe the app you want. Studio drafts a plan, builds the app and shows it running. Keep asking for changes in the same place.

Building with Studio uses IKON credits, and so does the AI your app uses, such as text, images or speech.

Use your own coding agent

Studio can also build with a coding agent on your own computer, signed in with your own account and working under your plan with it. This needs a computer with Windows, macOS or Linux, where the agent runs:

1. Download IKON Desktop, open it and sign in to IKON.
2. Under Your coding agents, install the ones you have an account for and sign in to each.
3. Select Connect Studio, then Open Studio. The first time, Studio asks you to allow this computer: select Allow.
4. In Studio, choose your agent under Runs on, below the field where you type.

Build on your own

You can also build IKON apps without Studio, in a desktop coding app or in a terminal. Both make the same kind of app, and an app can move between Studio and your computer.

In a desktop coding app

IKON Desktop installs and opens the coding agents it supports, under Build without Studio.

1. Under Start a new app, choose the coding agent and select Open. It opens in the IKON Apps folder in your home folder. Sign in there if it asks.

2. Claude Desktop opens with an example prompt in its message box. For the other agents, IKON Desktop copies the prompt for you to paste. It reads:

   Use the ikon tool to create a new IKON app in a new folder inside this one. The app should let my book club suggest books and vote on the next one to read.

3. Change the prompt to describe the app you want, and send it.

In a terminal

1. Install the IKON tool. On Windows, in PowerShell:

   irm https://ikonai.com/install.ps1 | iex
   

   On macOS and Linux:

   curl -fsSL https://ikonai.com/install.sh | bash
   

   The script installs .NET, Node.js, Git and the IKON tool where they are missing or too old, and signs you in. Run it again any time to update or repair the install.

2. Open a new terminal, so that it finds ikon, and make a folder for your apps:

   mkdir ikon-apps
   cd ikon-apps
   

3. Start your coding agent there. If you don't have one yet, ikon agent list lists the ones IKON works with and the command that installs each.

4. Say what you want, as in the example above.

You can also create an app yourself with ikon new <name>, then start your agent in its folder.

What happens next

The agent runs ikon new to create the app and reads the app's AGENTS.md, which explains how IKON apps are built. Then it writes the app, runs it and checks that it works. Keep asking for changes in the same conversation.

To run the app yourself, run ikon run in the app's folder. It prints the app's address when the app is ready. Windows may ask you to allow network access the first time, and macOS may ask for your login password to use the keychain; choose Allow or Always Allow. If your browser says the app is not secure, run ikon install certificate.

To put the app online, run ikon deploy in the app's folder, or ask your agent to deploy it. ikon deploy saves your changes and prints the app's public address.

Work on a Studio app on your computer

In Studio, open the app's Settings, then Code, choose Open on your computer, then Open in IKON Desktop. Or, in IKON Desktop, select Get an app under Build without Studio, then open the app in a coding agent from Your apps. Or run this in a terminal, with your app's id:

ikon open <app-id>

This signs you in, downloads the app with its history and checks that the computer can run it. Then ikon run runs it, and ikon save sends your changes back to Studio.