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Installation

Anton is an open-source AI coworker that can execute tasks, connect to tools and data, remember lessons, and improve its workflows over time. If you just want to get going, the Quickstart covers the happy path in five minutes. This page covers the details: what the installer actually does, the desktop apps, PATH setup, Windows firewall, and troubleshooting.

Install script (macOS / Linux)​

curl -sSf https://raw.githubusercontent.com/mindsdb/anton/main/install.sh | sh && export PATH="$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH"

The script is plain POSIX shell, needs no sudo, and is idempotent — safe to re-run. It does the following:

  1. Checks that git and curl are available (and tells you how to install them if not).
  2. Resolves the latest Anton release tag from GitHub.
  3. Finds uv, or offers to install it to ~/.local/bin via the official Astral installer.
  4. Runs uv tool install to put Anton in an isolated virtual environment under ~/.local/share/uv/tools/anton. Python 3.11+ is downloaded automatically if not present.
  5. Adds ~/.local/bin to your PATH in your shell config (.zshrc, .bashrc/.bash_profile, fish config, or .profile).
  6. Runs a scratchpad health check — verifies uv can create a working Python virtual environment, since that is what Anton's scratchpad uses at runtime.

Pass --force to skip all confirmation prompts. When piped from curl the script is non-interactive and proceeds without prompting.

Install script (Windows PowerShell)​

irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/mindsdb/anton/main/install.ps1 | iex

The Windows installer additionally:

  • Checks your PowerShell execution policy and offers to set it to RemoteSigned for the current user if it is too restrictive.
  • Checks for git (install with winget install Git.Git if missing).
  • Offers to add Windows Firewall rules so the scratchpad's Python can reach the internet (one UAC prompt).
  • Adds ~\.local\bin to your user PATH.

Desktop app​

Anton is also available as a desktop application wrapping the same engine:

See Desktop app for more.

Windows scratchpad firewall​

Windows Firewall blocks new executables by default, which can make the scratchpad's network calls time out. The installer offers to add the rules for you; if you skipped that step, run this in an elevated PowerShell:

netsh advfirewall firewall add rule name="Anton Scratchpad" dir=out action=allow program="$env:USERPROFILE\.anton\scratchpad-venv\Scripts\python.exe"

Each scratchpad gets its own virtual environment under ~\.anton\scratchpad-venvs\, so if a new scratchpad's internet calls time out, re-run the install script or add a rule pointing at that scratchpad's Scripts\python.exe.

Verify the install​

Open a new terminal (so the PATH change takes effect) and run:

anton version

You should see something like Anton v2.26.4.30.0. Then just run anton to start.

Troubleshooting​

anton: command not found — your shell hasn't picked up ~/.local/bin yet. Open a new terminal, or run export PATH="$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH" (macOS/Linux).

Missing dependencies — if Anton starts but detects missing Python packages, it lists them and offers to install them with uv on the spot, then restarts itself. If uv isn't found, it prints the exact pip install or reinstall command to run.

Broken scratchpad venv (macOS) — if the installer's health check warns about a broken Python binary, a Homebrew Python upgrade likely left stale symlinks. Fix with brew reinstall python, or install a managed Python with uv python install 3.12.

Upgrading and uninstalling​

Anton auto-updates at startup (see Updating Anton). You can also manage it directly through uv:

uv tool upgrade anton      # upgrade manually
uv tool uninstall anton    # uninstall

Uninstalling removes the program but leaves your configuration and memory in ~/.anton/ (and any per-project .anton/ folders). Delete those directories manually if you want a clean slate — note that ~/.anton/.env contains your API keys.