Chapter 3: Agents, Subagents, and Skills

Welcome to Chapter 3: Agents, Subagents, and Skills. In this part of Kimi CLI Tutorial: Multi-Mode Terminal Agent with MCP and ACP, you will build an intuitive mental model first, then move into concrete implementation details and practical production tradeoffs.

Kimi CLI supports behavior customization through built-in/custom agents, subagents, and layered skills.

Customization Layers

Layer	Purpose
built-in agents	default behavior presets
custom agent files	YAML-defined prompt/tool/subagent customization
skills	reusable domain instructions discoverable by agent

Practical Pattern

1. keep default agent for broad tasks
2. add custom agent file for project-specific controls
3. add team skills in shared directories (.agents/skills) for consistent conventions

Source References

• Agents and subagents
• Agent skills

Summary

You now have a strategy for standardized yet flexible Kimi behavior customization.

Next: Chapter 4: MCP Tooling and Security Model

Source Code Walkthrough

scripts/check_kimi_dependency_versions.py

The load_project_version function in scripts/check_kimi_dependency_versions.py handles a key part of this chapter's functionality:

def load_project_version(pyproject_path: Path) -> str:
    project = load_project_table(pyproject_path)
    version = project.get("version")
    if not isinstance(version, str) or not version:
        raise ValueError(f"Missing project.version in {pyproject_path}")
    return version


def find_pinned_dependency(deps: list[str], name: str) -> str | None:
    pattern = re.compile(rf"^{re.escape(name)}(?:\[[^\]]+\])?(.+)$")
    for dep in deps:
        match = pattern.match(dep)
        if not match:
            continue
        spec = match.group(1)
        pinned = re.match(r"^==(.+)$", spec)
        if pinned:
            return pinned.group(1)
        return None
    return None


def main() -> int:
    parser = argparse.ArgumentParser(description="Validate kimi-cli dependency versions.")
    parser.add_argument("--root-pyproject", type=Path, required=True)
    parser.add_argument("--kosong-pyproject", type=Path, required=True)
    parser.add_argument("--pykaos-pyproject", type=Path, required=True)
    args = parser.parse_args()

    try:

This function is important because it defines how Kimi CLI Tutorial: Multi-Mode Terminal Agent with MCP and ACP implements the patterns covered in this chapter.

scripts/check_kimi_dependency_versions.py

The find_pinned_dependency function in scripts/check_kimi_dependency_versions.py handles a key part of this chapter's functionality:

def find_pinned_dependency(deps: list[str], name: str) -> str | None:
    pattern = re.compile(rf"^{re.escape(name)}(?:\[[^\]]+\])?(.+)$")
    for dep in deps:
        match = pattern.match(dep)
        if not match:
            continue
        spec = match.group(1)
        pinned = re.match(r"^==(.+)$", spec)
        if pinned:
            return pinned.group(1)
        return None
    return None


def main() -> int:
    parser = argparse.ArgumentParser(description="Validate kimi-cli dependency versions.")
    parser.add_argument("--root-pyproject", type=Path, required=True)
    parser.add_argument("--kosong-pyproject", type=Path, required=True)
    parser.add_argument("--pykaos-pyproject", type=Path, required=True)
    args = parser.parse_args()

    try:
        root_project = load_project_table(args.root_pyproject)
    except ValueError as exc:
        print(f"error: {exc}", file=sys.stderr)
        return 1

    deps = root_project.get("dependencies", [])
    if not isinstance(deps, list):
        print(

This function is important because it defines how Kimi CLI Tutorial: Multi-Mode Terminal Agent with MCP and ACP implements the patterns covered in this chapter.

scripts/check_kimi_dependency_versions.py

The main function in scripts/check_kimi_dependency_versions.py handles a key part of this chapter's functionality:

def main() -> int:
    parser = argparse.ArgumentParser(description="Validate kimi-cli dependency versions.")
    parser.add_argument("--root-pyproject", type=Path, required=True)
    parser.add_argument("--kosong-pyproject", type=Path, required=True)
    parser.add_argument("--pykaos-pyproject", type=Path, required=True)
    args = parser.parse_args()

    try:
        root_project = load_project_table(args.root_pyproject)
    except ValueError as exc:
        print(f"error: {exc}", file=sys.stderr)
        return 1

    deps = root_project.get("dependencies", [])
    if not isinstance(deps, list):
        print(
            f"error: project.dependencies must be a list in {args.root_pyproject}",
            file=sys.stderr,
        )
        return 1

    errors: list[str] = []
    for name, pyproject_path in (
        ("kosong", args.kosong_pyproject),
        ("pykaos", args.pykaos_pyproject),
    ):
        try:
            package_version = load_project_version(pyproject_path)
        except ValueError as exc:
            errors.append(str(exc))

This function is important because it defines how Kimi CLI Tutorial: Multi-Mode Terminal Agent with MCP and ACP implements the patterns covered in this chapter.

How These Components Connect

flowchart TD
    A[load_project_version]
    B[find_pinned_dependency]
    C[main]
    A --> B
    B --> C