TUI

altimate launches a terminal-based user interface (TUI) by default.

altimate

Interface Layout

The TUI has three main areas:

• Message area: shows the conversation with the AI assistant
• Input area: where you type messages and commands
• Sidebar: shows session info, tool calls, and file changes (toggle with leader key + s)

Input Shortcuts

Prefix	Action	Example
@	Reference a file	@src/models/user.sql explain this model
!	Run a shell command	!dbt run --select my_model
/	Slash command	/discover, /connect, /review, /models, /theme, /trace

Leader Key

The leader key (default: Ctrl+X) gives access to all TUI keybindings. Press leader, then the action key:

Key	Action
n	New session
l	List sessions
e	Open editor
s	Toggle sidebar
t	List themes
m	List models
i	Enhance prompt (rewrite with AI for clarity)
a	List agents
k	List keybinds
q	Quit

Scrolling

• Page up/down: scroll messages
• Home/End: jump to first/last message
• Mouse scroll: scroll with mouse wheel

Configure scroll speed:

{
  "tui": {
    "scroll_speed": 3,
    "scroll_acceleration": {
      "enabled": true
    }
  }
}

Agent Switching

Switch between agents during a conversation:

• Press leader key + a to see all agents
• Use /agent <name> to switch directly
• Built-in agents: general, plan, build, explore
• Data engineering agents: builder, analyst, plan

Diff Display

Configure how file diffs are displayed:

{
  "tui": {
    "diff_style": "stacked"
  }
}

Options: "auto" (default) or "stacked".

Session Management

Leader + Key	Action
n	New session
l	Session list
Shift+D	Delete session
Shift+R	Rename session
Shift+F	Fork session
Shift+E	Export session
Shift+C	Compact session

Editor Integration

Press leader + e to open the current message in your $EDITOR. This is useful for composing long prompts or pasting multi-line SQL.