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trae **use with caution

Trae AI is a free, adaptive, AI-powered integrated development environment (IDE) built by ByteDance the makers of Tik Tok (Chinese).

It combines chat-driven interactions, multi-modal inputs and intelligent builder mode to streamline coding tasks. Unlike simple AI plugins, Trae is a full IDE with its own agent framework and supports GPT-4o, Claude 3.5/3.7/4.0, Gemini 2.5 and others - and is currently free in Beta.

They are however training off your data. So don’t use this for personal, proprietary or confidential work. But you could probably pretty freely do student work on it.

Key features of Trae

Feature
Description
Builder mode
Automatically breaks down high-level tasks (e.g., “Create React app with auth”) into steps, generates code across files, and previews before applying
Chat mode
Conversational interface to ask for explanations, refactorings, bug fixes, or clarifications—right within your IDE .
Multimodal input
Upload screenshots, design files, or UI mockups and Trae interprets them to generate relevant code components .
Global context awareness
Can indexes your entire workspace, terminal history, and project structure to offer highly contextual and accurate suggestions.
Model Context Protocol (MCP)
Enables creation of multiple specialised AI agents (e.g., one for testing, another for style cleanup) and orchestrates them to handle complex workflows.
Real-time autocompletion
Smart inline suggestions with code templates, formatting, and linting for quicker coding.
Webview terminal insights
Preview web apps inside the IDE and link terminal outputs directly into chat for debugging assistance .
Free and multi‑model
Includes access to GPT‑4o, Claude 3.5/Sonnet, and other models at no cost; compatible with macOS and Windows (beta), Linux coming soon .

Note again - MacOS is the preferred operating system in the world of AI.

Use cases

  • Rapid app bootstrapping: Describe your project in plain English and get scaffolded code with routes, components, and dependencies.
  • Conversational debugging: Paste terminal errors or code blocks into the chat and ask for fixes or explanations.
  • Visual-driven development: Upload a Figma mockup or screenshot and Trae will generate matching UI code.
  • Chat‑guided refactoring: Ask Trae to tidy up imports, apply lint rules, or migrate codebases.
  • Smart agent workflow: Spin up specialized AI agents—like a test‑writer or documenter—for focused tasks via MCP.

How to get started with Trae

  1. Download Trae from temeai.ai (macOS available now; Windows beta out soon)
  2. Install and configure: Choose light/dark themes, optionally import VS Code or Cursor settings
  3. Launch the IDE, authenticate via GitHub/Google or use guest mode.
  4. Start coding:
    • Use Builder Mode to auto-generate full projects.
    • Use Chat Mode for debugging, refactoring, and code explanations.
    • Upload images or files to enrich context.
  5. Extend with MCP agents, customise AI settings, and define project rules as needed.

Why would you use this tool

  • Truly free in beta—unlike most paid services
  • Multimodal and context rich—understands images, terminal history, and full project trees.
  • Flexible agent system—use multiple AI tools together in one environment.
  • Local access to files
  • Rapidly evolving—backed by ByteDance with regular updates and active developer feedback. This appears to be one of China’s most powerful attempts at consumer on device AI agent technology.

Conclusion

Trae AI offers a free alternative to paid AI-powered IDEs with premium model access and powerful features like builder mode, multimodal input, and agent framework. While excellent for rapid prototyping and student work, users should exercise caution with proprietary code due to ByteDance's data training practices.