{
  "schema_version": "2.0",
  "slug": "aider",
  "name": "Aider",
  "agent_url": "https://aider.chat",
  "category": "Coding",

  "run_id": "run-aider-handcraft-2026-05-23",
  "run_at": "2026-05-23T14:30:00Z",
  "editor": "Hlido Editor",
  "editorial_method": "public-surface-tier-1+editorial-narrative-v2+handcraft",
  "methodology_version": "2026.05",
  "methodology_url": "/methodology/public-surface-tier-1/",

  "score": 92,
  "tier": "VITAL",
  "laddoo_score": 92,
  "confidence": "high",

  "hlido_opinion": {
    "headline": "The dependable open-source AI pair-programmer for the terminal — Apache-2.0, git-native, model-agnostic, and the reference implementation other CLI coding agents are still catching up to.",
    "body": "Aider is Paul Gauthier's pair-programmer in a CLI, and after years of iterative refinement it has earned the status other coding agents are still working towards. The killer primitive is the diff-edit workflow: the model returns surgical edits, Aider validates and applies them, auto-retries when a model produces malformed diffs, and commits every change to git with a reasoned message. Bring any LLM you want — Anthropic, OpenAI, Gemini, local Ollama, dozens more via LiteLLM. No vendor lock, no telemetry by default, no IDE shell to learn. The repo-map heuristic for context selection is honest about its limits and lets you /add files manually when it matters. Where Aider shows its CLI roots: there's no GUI for less terminal-fluent collaborators, model setup requires API key juggling across providers, and the repo-map struggles on monorepos beyond ~50k files without manual file discipline. None of this is disqualifying — it's the cost of staying lean. Compared to Claude Code, Aider stays model-agnostic; compared to Cursor or Windsurf, Aider has zero IDE chrome and keeps your editor your editor. For agentic coding pipelines that need diff-validated, git-traceable changes from any model, Aider is the production-quality baseline.",
    "voice": "Hlido Editor",
    "as_of": "2026-05-23",
    "editor_signature_pending": true
  },

  "tier_rationale": "VITAL (92) because Aider has shipped continuously for years, the diff-edit primitive is the production-quality bar other CLI coding agents are still imitating, the project is healthy (active maintainers, large contributor base, Apache-2.0), and the agent-relevance is concrete — it's an actual CLI an agent or developer can invoke programmatically. Not 95+ because the onboarding still assumes terminal fluency and the documentation, while exhaustive, isn't designed for users new to CLI workflows.",

  "what_it_does_well": [
    "Surgical diff edits that the tool validates and auto-retries when the model produces malformed output",
    "Git-native commits with reasoned messages — every AI change is auditable",
    "Model-agnostic via LiteLLM (Anthropic, OpenAI, Gemini, Mistral, local Ollama, dozens more)",
    "Works fully offline with local models — no required telemetry, no required cloud round-trip",
    "Transparent repo-map for context selection with manual /add override when heuristics aren't enough"
  ],

  "what_it_fails_at": [
    "Terminal-only — no GUI surface for less terminal-fluent collaborators",
    "Repo-map heuristics struggle on monorepos beyond ~50k files without manual file curation",
    "Multi-model orchestration (architect-editor split) works but requires manual config",
    "No built-in evaluation harness for measuring edit quality on the user's own codebase",
    "API-key juggling across providers is more friction than a single-vendor CLI"
  ],

  "best_for": [
    "Solo developers and small teams comfortable in the terminal",
    "Open-source projects that want to stay off vendor lock-in",
    "Users who want to bring their own LLM (Anthropic, OpenAI, local) and switch when models change",
    "Engineering teams who value diff-level audit trails of every AI-authored change",
    "Headless and scripted agentic coding pipelines"
  ],

  "not_recommended_for": [
    "Developers who need a graphical IDE-integrated experience",
    "First-time CLI users — onboarding assumes baseline terminal fluency",
    "Teams enforcing approval workflows that don't map onto git commits",
    "Users wanting one-click deploy from prompt to production (separate tooling needed)"
  ],

  "red_flags": [],

  "compared_to": [
    {
      "slug": "claude-code",
      "verdict_diff": "Claude Code is Anthropic-native, sandboxed by default, and tightly integrated with Sonnet/Opus. Aider stays model-agnostic — bring any LLM via LiteLLM. Choose Claude Code if you live in Anthropic's stack and want the deepest model integration; choose Aider if you want vendor portability.",
      "preferred_for_axis": "model-portability"
    },
    {
      "slug": "cursor",
      "verdict_diff": "Cursor is an IDE with AI built in; Aider is AI for the terminal you already use. Cursor wins on inline UX and visual diff review; Aider wins on git-cleanliness and headless automation.",
      "preferred_for_axis": "terminal-vs-ide"
    },
    {
      "slug": "continue-dev",
      "verdict_diff": "Continue is the open-source IDE-extension play (VS Code, JetBrains). Aider is the CLI play. Same model-agnostic philosophy, different surfaces. Use Continue inside your editor; use Aider for headless or scripted runs.",
      "preferred_for_axis": "cli-vs-editor-extension"
    }
  ],

  "evidence_urls": [
    {"claim": "Open source under Apache-2.0", "source": "https://github.com/Aider-AI/aider/blob/main/LICENSE.txt", "tested_at": "2026-05-23", "verified": true},
    {"claim": "Supports 100+ LLM providers via LiteLLM", "source": "https://aider.chat/docs/llms.html", "tested_at": "2026-05-23", "verified": true},
    {"claim": "Git-native edit-and-commit workflow with auto-commit messages", "source": "https://aider.chat/docs/git.html", "tested_at": "2026-05-23", "verified": true},
    {"claim": "Active project with regular releases", "source": "https://github.com/Aider-AI/aider/releases", "tested_at": "2026-05-23", "verified": true}
  ],

  "agent_relevance": {
    "has_api": true,
    "has_cli": true,
    "has_mcp": false,
    "has_webhook": false,
    "has_sdk": true,
    "behavioral_testable": true,
    "agent_integration_path": "Install via pip; invoke as a subprocess; pass natural-language --message and target files; capture git commits as the audit trail. Solid foundation for agentic coding pipelines that need diff-validated, model-agnostic, traceable changes.",
    "agent_friendly_score": 9
  },

  "checklist": [
    {"id": "homepage_loads", "pass": true, "required": true, "tested_at": "2026-05-23T14:30:00Z"},
    {"id": "primary_value_prop", "pass": true, "required": true, "evidence": "'AI pair programming in your terminal'", "tested_at": "2026-05-23T14:30:00Z"},
    {"id": "cta_present", "pass": true, "required": true, "evidence": "Installation instructions on landing", "tested_at": "2026-05-23T14:30:00Z"},
    {"id": "pricing_or_access", "pass": true, "required": false, "evidence": "Apache-2.0, free to use; user pays own LLM costs", "tested_at": "2026-05-23T14:30:00Z"},
    {"id": "evidence_or_demo", "pass": true, "required": false, "evidence": "Documentation + GitHub repo + recorded demos on aider.chat", "tested_at": "2026-05-23T14:30:00Z"}
  ],

  "summary": "The dependable open-source AI pair-programmer for the terminal — Apache-2.0, git-native, model-agnostic, and the reference implementation other CLI coding agents are still catching up to.",
  "_summary_deprecation_note": "Field kept as a v1-compatibility alias of hlido_opinion.headline. New consumers should read hlido_opinion.{headline,body,voice,as_of} for the canonical Hlido-owned opinion. Old consumers (registry summary column, HF mirror, MCP find_trusted teaser) keep working.",

  "staleness_after": "2026-08-23",
  "review_age_days_at_publish": 0,
  "next_review_due_at": "2026-08-23",

  "attestation_url": "/data/attestations/aider.json",
  "signature_pending": true,

  "source": "hlido-editor-v2-handcraft"
}