Nika Workflow Language

June 23, 2026 · View on GitHub

One extension, every VS Code-compatible editor. nika-vscode is the repo name because that's the extension platform (like vscode-eslint) · it ships to the VS Code Marketplace AND OpenVSX, so Cursor, Windsurf, VSCodium and friends install it natively. JetBrains/Zed/Neovim get the same brain via nika lsp + the published JSON Schema.

Language support for Nika (.nika.yaml) · the open workflow language for AI, and the only one auditable BEFORE it runs: cost ceiling, permits boundary, secret flows and schema parity are all static facts the editor paints in the margin. Apache-2.0 spec · AGPL engine.

Features

The audit moat, in the editor

Check-as-you-type · nika check --json painted as diagnostics (conformance · secret leaks/egresses · permits escapes · schema findings · unknown tools · hints), with NIKA-XXXX codes linking to explanations
One-keystroke permits repair · the engine's machine-applicable fix grammar (add "X" to permits.<path>) applied as a quick fix · the same convergence loop agents run in CI
Inferred boundary · one command inserts the whole permits: block derived by check --infer-permits (default-deny from then on)
Static cost audit · per-task $min–max inlay hints + the workflow ceiling on a code lens · audited before a single token is spent
Secrets lint · literal credentials flagged locally (pure scan · zero network) with a ${{ env.VAR }} rewrite quick fix

Language intelligence (LSP-grade · live today)

Schema-derived completions & hover · every key, enum and doc comes FROM the binary (nika schema + nika spec --canon): top-level keys, task fields, per-verb bodies, capture/backoff_strategy enums, the closed builtin tool set, provider-prefixed model: values, nika:fetch extract modes · a new field in the engine lights up here with zero extension update
${{ ... }} expression intel · completions, hover and go-to-definition for tasks. / with. / env. / secrets. / vars. references
Task rename & find-references · hits all 4 syntactic homes (declaration · depends_on · ${{ tasks.X }} islands · bare CEL in when:) and enforces the engine id grammar (snake_case · CEL-safe)
Outline / breadcrumbs · tasks with verb detail + the permits boundary
Full LSP (the day the binary ships nika lsp, it takes over automatically · the client declares which layers it keeps via initializationOptions, no double-reporting)
Syntax + snippets + semantic scopes for the 4-verb surface · every snippet is own-corpus tested against nika check

See the run

DAG visualization · the engine's canonical graph projection (verb · model · when-gates ⌁ · fan-out ×N · cost badges) · click-to-jump · mermaid/dot export
The engineering read · exact max parallelism (Dilworth antichain, with a witness set), speedup ceiling (work-span), k-worker wall-clock estimates (Graham-bounded list scheduling · measured milliseconds after a run), pinch points, and per-task failure blast radius · in the DAG explainer (?) and hover card. Algorithms + citations: docs/ALGORITHMS.md
Live run · nika run streams its event stream straight onto the DAG · statuses light per the §3.1 run-state machine (running · retrying · success · failed · cancelled · skipped), terminal transitions narrate in the activity feed, the verdict + cost land on close. The same canonical NDJSON the flight recorder writes, painted in real time
Flight recorder · a Runs view over .nika/traces/*.ndjson (status · duration · cost per run) and animated trace replay through the DAG — replay re-renders, never re-executes
Validate / Inspect from the editor, tasks + problem matcher

Agent-native

LM tools · nika_check / nika_explain / nika_graph registered as Language Model Tools · in-editor AI agents validate the workflows they write through the REAL oracle instead of guessing
MCP + rules setup · one command wires editor MCP config and Cursor rules; nika init scaffolds the repo-local AGENTS.md
Deterministic authoring prompt · copy the template→check→repair protocol for any chat agent

Engine-honest by construction

Capability-gated UI · the extension probes what the binary ACTUALLY ships (--help) · the static suite + run light up today (the gate lit run the day nika-runtime reached L3, zero extension update); lsp / mcp light up the same way the day they climb
Binary = vocabulary SSOT · spec, JSON schema, examples and templates are read from the self-contained binary (nika spec · nika schema · nika examples · nika new) · nothing duplicated, nothing drifts
Binary auto-download · optional (nika.server.autoDownload) · SHA256 verified · zero telemetry anywhere

The language (4 verbs · locked forever)

nika: v1
workflow: hello

model: mock/echo          # deterministic · swap for anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-6

tasks:
  - id: greet
    infer:
      prompt: "Say hello in French, in one short sentence."

infer (LLM) · exec (subprocess) · invoke (builtin/tool · HTTP fetch is the nika:fetch builtin here) · agent (agent loop · default-deny tools).