TL;DR
Agent of Empires (aoe) is a Rust-built terminal session manager that uses tmux to create and persist interactive sessions for AI coding agents. It provides a text UI for organizing sessions, profiles for separate workspaces, and multiple install options including a quick script, Homebrew, or building from source.
What happened
A new open-source tool called Agent of Empires (aoe) packages tmux sessions into a focused workflow for running and monitoring AI coding agents on Linux and macOS. Written in Rust, aoe presents a terminal user interface (TUI) that lists sessions, lets users create, attach, detach and remove sessions, and groups them into hierarchical folders. Each session corresponds to a tmux session, so attached sessions behave like native tmux windows; basic tmux shortcuts are used to detach or navigate. The project supports multiple profiles, storing session and group state per profile under ~/.agent-of-empires/, and exposes environment variables to select profiles and enable debug logging. Installation options include a curl-install script, Homebrew, or building from source with cargo. The repository ships development helpers (check, test, fmt, clippy) and documents a known flicker issue with Claude Code that the author attributes to the external project rather than aoe itself.
Why it matters
- Keeps agent processes persistent and recoverable by leveraging tmux, reducing risk of losing interactive state.
- Profiles and group organization help separate contexts (work, personal, clients) without cross-contamination of sessions.
- A TUI lowers the barrier to managing many agent sessions compared with raw tmux commands or manual window handling.
- Integration with standard developer tools (Homebrew, cargo) simplifies adoption for developers familiar with those ecosystems.
Key facts
- aoe is implemented in Rust and uses tmux as its underlying session mechanism.
- Install options: quick curl script, Homebrew (njbrake/aoe/aoe), or build from source via cargo build –release.
- Configuration and state live in ~/.agent-of-empires/, including config.toml, profiles, sessions.json, groups.json, and logs.
- Profiles isolate session sets; aoe -p <profile> switches profiles and loads separate sessions and groups per profile.
- Environment variables: AGENT_OF_EMPIRES_PROFILE (default profile) and AGENT_OF_EMPIRES_DEBUG (enable debug logging).
- The repository includes development commands: cargo check, cargo test, cargo fmt, cargo clippy, and cargo build for release.
- Known visual flicker with Claude Code is documented and attributed to an external Claude Code issue rather than aoe itself.
- Project is released under the MIT License and the GitHub repository lists 11 stars and 15 releases (as of the source).
- aoe was inspired by agent-deck (implemented in Go with Bubble Tea according to project acknowledgments).
What to watch next
- Claude Code flicker tracking: aoe notes the issue is upstream with Claude Code (referenced external issue).
- Windows support: not confirmed in the source
- Planned feature roadmap or major new integrations: not confirmed in the source
Quick glossary
- tmux: A terminal multiplexer that lets users run multiple terminal sessions in a single window and keep them persistent across disconnections.
- TUI: Text User Interface — a visual interface rendered in a terminal that provides interactive menus and views without a graphical environment.
- Profile: A separate workspace configuration that stores its own session and group state, enabling isolated contexts for different projects or clients.
- Claude Code / OpenCode: Names used in the project to refer to AI coding agent interfaces or integrations; specifics beyond status detection are not detailed in the source.
Reader FAQ
How do I install aoe?
Options include a quick curl-install script, Homebrew (njbrake/aoe/aoe), or building from source with cargo build –release.
How does aoe keep sessions running?
Each aoe session is a tmux session under the hood, so sessions persist via tmux even after detaching.
How do I use aoe from a mobile SSH client?
Recommended approach: start a tmux session (tmux new-session -s main) and run aoe inside it; use tmux shortcuts (e.g., Ctrl+b L) to toggle back.
Is the Claude Code flicker caused by aoe?
The repository states the flicker is a known issue with Claude Code itself and links to the external issue; it attributes the problem to Claude Code rather than aoe.
Does aoe support Windows?
not confirmed in the source
Agent of Empires (aoe) A terminal session manager for Linux and MacOS using tmux to aid in management and monitoring of AI coding agents, written in Rust. Installation Quick install…
Sources
- Show HN: Agent-of-empires: OpenCode and Claude Code session manager
- Agent Of Empires
- Welcome to Gas Town – Steve Yegge – Medium
- asheshgoplani/agent-deck: Terminal session manager for …
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