AI Editors & IDEs

AI editors deeply integrate large language models into the code editing workflow, providing intelligent code completion, conversational programming, automatic refactoring, and more. This article covers how to install and use popular AI editors on Ubuntu 26.04.

Cursor

Cursor is an AI-native editor built on VS Code, integrating multiple large language models (Claude, GPT-4, etc.) with AI chat, code generation, and smart editing features.

Install via apt Repository (Recommended)

Cursor provides an official apt repository; installing this way gives you a desktop icon, automatic updates, and CLI tools:


# Add Cursor's official GPG key
curl -fsSL https://downloads.cursor.com/keys/anysphere.asc | \
  gpg --dearmor | sudo tee /etc/apt/keyrings/cursor.gpg > /dev/null
 
# Add the repository (check https://cursor.com/downloads for the current repo address)
echo "deb [arch=amd64 signed-by=/etc/apt/keyrings/cursor.gpg] https://downloads.cursor.com/aptrepo stable main" | \
  sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/cursor.list
 
sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y cursor
 
# Launch Cursor
cursor

Install via AppImage

If you prefer not to use the apt repository, download an AppImage or deb package from the official download page cursor.com/download :


# Copy the latest AppImage download link from https://cursor.com/download and replace the placeholder URL below
wget -O ~/cursor.appimage "<latest AppImage download link from the official site>"
 
# Add executable permission
chmod +x ~/cursor.appimage
 
# Run Cursor
~/cursor.appimage

Create Desktop Shortcut (AppImage)


# Move the AppImage to a proper location
mkdir -p ~/.local/bin
mv ~/cursor.appimage ~/.local/bin/cursor.appimage
 
# Create a desktop entry file
# Note: .desktop Exec does not expand variables like $HOME; you must use an absolute path
# Replace YOUR_USER below with your username (the output of echo $USER)
cat > ~/.local/share/applications/cursor.desktop << 'EOF'
[Desktop Entry]
Name=Cursor
Comment=AI Code Editor
Exec=/home/YOUR_USER/.local/bin/cursor.appimage --no-sandbox
Icon=cursor
Type=Application
Categories=Development;IDE;
StartupNotify=true
EOF

Cursor Basic Usage

Cursor’s core AI features:

Ctrl+K — Inline code generation and editing; select code and let AI modify it
Ctrl+L — Open AI chat panel to discuss code with AI
Ctrl+I — Composer mode; AI can make changes across multiple files
Tab — Accept AI code completion suggestions


# Launch Cursor in your project directory
cd ~/my-project
cursor .

Tip

Cursor supports importing all VS Code settings and extensions. On first launch, you’ll be prompted to import — select “Yes” for a seamless migration.

Cursor Configuration Tips

In Cursor settings (Ctrl+,), recommended configurations:

Models — Select Claude Sonnet or GPT-4 as the default model
Privacy Mode — Enable privacy mode if working with sensitive code
Rules for AI — Create a .cursor/rules file in the project root to define AI behavior rules


# Create project-level AI rules
mkdir -p .cursor
cat > .cursor/rules << 'EOF'
You are a senior Python developer.
Please respond in English.
Follow PEP 8 coding style.
Prefer type annotations.
EOF

Windsurf (Codeium)

Windsurf is an AI editor from Codeium, also built on VS Code, offering free AI code completion and chat features.

Install Windsurf


# Method 1: Install via official deb package
wget -O /tmp/windsurf.deb "https://windsurf-stable.codeiumdata.com/linux-x64/stable/latest"
sudo dpkg -i /tmp/windsurf.deb
sudo apt install -f -y
 
# Method 2: Install via snap (if available)
# sudo snap install windsurf --classic

Launch and Use


# Launch Windsurf
windsurf
 
# Launch in a project directory
windsurf ~/my-project

AI Code Completion Features

Windsurf’s main features:

Auto code completion — Real-time intelligent suggestions while typing; press Tab to accept
Cascade — AI chat and multi-file editing; shortcut Ctrl+L
Command Palette — Ctrl+Shift+P to search for AI-related commands
Inline editing — Select code and press Ctrl+K to describe your intended changes

Note

Windsurf offers free credits, and basic code completion is completely free. Advanced features (like using more powerful models) require a paid subscription.

Zed

Zed is a high-performance code editor written in Rust with extremely fast startup and built-in AI assistance.

Install Zed


# Method 1: Via official install script
curl -fsSL https://zed.dev/install.sh | bash
 
# After installation, Zed is installed to ~/.local/bin/zed
# Ensure ~/.local/bin is in your PATH
echo 'export PATH="$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH"' >> ~/.bashrc
source ~/.bashrc


# Method 2: Via Flatpak
sudo apt install -y flatpak
flatpak install flathub dev.zed.Zed -y
 
# Launch via Flatpak
flatpak run dev.zed.Zed

Zed Built-in AI Features

Zed has built-in support for multiple AI models:


# Launch Zed
zed ~/my-project

Configure AI models:

In Zed, press Ctrl+, to open settings and edit settings.json:


{
  "language_model": {
    "provider": "anthropic",
    "model": "claude-sonnet-4-20250514"
  },
  "features": {
    "inline_completion_provider": "zed"
  },
  "assistant": {
    "enabled": true,
    "version": "2"
  }
}

Zed AI keyboard shortcuts:

Ctrl+Enter — AI inline assistance, generate or modify code
Ctrl+Shift+Enter — Open AI assistant panel
Tab — Accept code completion suggestions

Set API Keys


# Zed will prompt for API keys on first AI use
# You can also set them via environment variables
echo 'export ANTHROPIC_API_KEY="your-api-key-here"' >> ~/.bashrc
echo 'export OPENAI_API_KEY="your-api-key-here"' >> ~/.bashrc
source ~/.bashrc

Tip

Zed starts much faster than VS Code and Cursor, making it especially suitable for opening large projects. If you prioritize editor performance, Zed is an excellent choice.

VS Code + AI Extensions

Visual Studio Code can integrate multiple AI programming tools through its rich extension ecosystem.

Install VS Code


# Method 1: Install via apt repository
wget -qO- https://packages.microsoft.com/keys/microsoft.asc | gpg --dearmor > /tmp/packages.microsoft.gpg
sudo install -D -o root -g root -m 644 /tmp/packages.microsoft.gpg /etc/apt/keyrings/packages.microsoft.gpg
echo "deb [arch=amd64 signed-by=/etc/apt/keyrings/packages.microsoft.gpg] https://packages.microsoft.com/repos/code stable main" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/vscode.list
sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y code
 
# Method 2: Install via snap
sudo snap install code --classic

GitHub Copilot

GitHub Copilot is one of the most popular AI code completion tools.


# Install Copilot extensions via command line
code --install-extension GitHub.copilot
code --install-extension GitHub.copilot-chat

After installation, log in to your GitHub account and activate your Copilot subscription.

Main features:

Real-time code completion (press Tab to accept)
Copilot Chat panel (Ctrl+Shift+I)
Inline code editing (select code, right-click, choose Copilot)

Continue

Continue is an open-source AI coding assistant extension that supports connecting to multiple models (including local models).


# Install the Continue extension
code --install-extension Continue.continue

Configure Continue to connect to a local Ollama model:

After installation, open Continue settings in VS Code (~/.continue/config.json):


{
  "models": [
    {
      "title": "Ollama - Qwen 2.5",
      "provider": "ollama",
      "model": "qwen2.5-coder:14b",
      "apiBase": "http://localhost:11434"
    },
    {
      "title": "Claude Sonnet",
      "provider": "anthropic",
      "model": "claude-sonnet-4-20250514",
      "apiKey": "your-api-key"
    }
  ],
  "tabAutocompleteModel": {
    "title": "Ollama Autocomplete",
    "provider": "ollama",
    "model": "qwen2.5-coder:7b"
  }
}

Cline

Cline (formerly Claude Dev) is a powerful AI coding agent extension that can autonomously execute coding tasks.


# Install the Cline extension
code --install-extension saoudrizwan.claude-dev

Cline features:

Autonomously reads/writes files and executes commands
Supports multiple models (Claude, GPT-4, local models)
Can browse the web for documentation
Executes step by step, requiring user confirmation at each step

Click the Cline icon in the VS Code sidebar, configure your API key, and start using it.

Other Recommended AI Extensions


# Tabnine -- AI code completion (has free tier)
code --install-extension TabNine.tabnine-vscode
 
# CodeGeeX -- Free AI coding assistant
code --install-extension aminer.codegeex
 
# Cody -- Sourcegraph's AI coding assistant
code --install-extension sourcegraph.cody-ai

AI Editor Comparison

Feature	Cursor	Windsurf	Zed	VS Code + Extensions
Base	VS Code Fork	VS Code Fork	Independent (Rust)	VS Code
AI completion	Built-in	Built-in	Built-in	Requires extensions
AI chat	Built-in	Built-in	Built-in	Requires extensions
Multi-file editing	Composer	Cascade	Supported	Cline
Local models	Supported	Limited	Supported	Continue
Price	Free/Paid	Free/Paid	Free	Varies by extension
Performance	Medium	Medium	Very fast	Medium
Extension compatibility	VS Code	VS Code	Zed native	VS Code

Note

The AI editor landscape is evolving rapidly, and features and pricing may change at any time. We recommend visiting each tool’s official website for the latest information before installing.