MoonshotAI / MoonshotAI/kimi-code

[Feature] Support passing thinking effort via a CLI flag (e.g. --effort)

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TypeScript
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Description

What feature would you like to see?

Support passing the thinking effort via a CLI flag for the current launch, e.g. kimi --effort low or kimi -p "..." --effort max, mirroring how -m/--model overrides the model per-launch.

Today effort can only be changed through config.toml ([thinking] effort, per-model default_effort / support_efforts, [secondary_model].default_effort) or the ACP protocol's set_config. There is no command-line or per-launch override, which makes it awkward to:

  • run one-off kimi -p tasks with a different effort (e.g. cheap low for quick summaries, max for hard problems),
  • temporarily try an effort without editing ~/.kimi-code/config.toml (then remembering to revert),
  • set effort from scripts / CI.
Additional information

Verified against the source at @moonshot-ai/kimi-code@0.31.1 (matches installed v0.31.1):

  • The full flag set is registered in apps/kimi-code/src/cli/commands.ts via Commander — no effort option exists.
  • CLIOptions in apps/kimi-code/src/cli/options.ts has no effort field.
  • allowUnknownOption(false) means --effort currently fails at startup with "unknown option".
  • Official docs list no effort flag either: https://www.kimi.com/code/docs/en/kimi-code-cli/reference/kimi-command.html

Related: #1051 (TUI feedback for [thinking].effort) — related but distinct; this request is about a CLI/launch override.

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

First steps

  1. Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
  2. Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
  3. Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
  4. Open a pull request that references the issue number.

Research direction

Start in apps/kimi-code/src/cli/commands.ts, where Commander registers flags, and apps/kimi-code/src/cli/options.ts, where CLIOptions is defined. Trace how the existing -m/--model override reaches launch configuration, then determine where the effort value should be validated and applied. Update the official CLI reference page and verify that one-off commands accept --effort without editing config.toml.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
typescript
Domain
cli
Issue type
Feature
Difficulty
3/5
Estimated time
1-2 days
Activity status
Quiet
Clarity
Mostly clear
Newbie friendliness
72/100

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