ai-todo

AI-native task management for coding agents

Simple, persistent, version-controlled TODO tracking that works naturally with AI agents like Cursor, Claude, and Copilot.

Quick Start

Add this to your project's .cursor/mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ai-todo": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["ai-todo", "serve", "--root", "${workspaceFolder}"]
    }
  }
}

Then enable the server in Cursor Settings → MCP Servers → toggle ai-todo on.

That's it! Your AI agent can now manage tasks directly. No installation required.

Try it: Ask your agent to "create a task for implementing user authentication"

Why ai-todo?

AI agents track tasks internally, but this creates a closed system that gets lost after sessions end. ai-todo provides a permanent, version-controlled record in your Git repository.

• Persistent — Tasks survive across sessions, restarts, and time
• Version Controlled — Tracked in Git alongside your code
• AI-Native — MCP integration for direct agent interaction
• Human Readable — Plain Markdown in standard TODO.md format
• Zero Config — Works immediately, no setup required
• Instant & Local — No API calls, authentication, or rate limits

Installation Options

Option A: Zero-Install MCP (Recommended)

For AI agent integration via Cursor or similar IDEs. Uses uvx to run on-demand without permanent installation.

Project-specific setup (.cursor/mcp.json):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ai-todo": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["ai-todo", "serve", "--root", "${workspaceFolder}"]
    }
  }
}

Requires uv to be installed (curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh).

Option B: System Installation

For CLI usage or permanent MCP server setup. Requires Python 3.10+.

# Install globally (recommended)
uv tool install ai-todo

# Or with pipx
pipx install ai-todo

CLI Usage: ai-todo [command] (e.g., ai-todo add "My task", ai-todo list)

MCP Server: ai-todo serve (for Cursor integration)

For Humans

With ai-todo, you simply tell your AI agent what you want in plain English:

• "Create a task for implementing user authentication"
• "Break down the auth feature into subtasks"
• "Mark task 1 as complete"
• "Show me all tasks tagged with #bug"
• "Archive completed tasks"
• "Fix the issue from #123" — Reference GitHub Issues in tasks

Your agent handles the technical details. All tasks are stored in TODO.md in your repository.

See It In Action

This repository uses ai-todo for its own development! Check TODO.md to see:

• Task hierarchies with subtasks
• Tag-based organization (#feature, #bug, #documentation)
• Completion tracking and archiving
• Real development workflow in action

Documentation

• MCP Setup Guide — Detailed Cursor integration
• Migration Guide — Upgrading from v2.x shell script
• Getting Started — Complete setup walkthrough
• FAQ — Common questions answered
• Full Documentation — All guides and references

License

Apache License 2.0 — See LICENSE