Assistant Engine

Assistant Engine is a developer-focused AI tool and UI. It enables running and interacting with multiple AI models locally, with deep understanding of code, advanced code comprehension, RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation), Text-to-SQL, and PowerShell execution, all without relying on external cloud APIs.

Unlike most AI tools focused mainly on Python, Assistant Engine pushes AI-assisted development into the C# and .NET ecosystem with leading code intelligence.

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Need an Enterprise License? – Contact our team

Enjoy enterprise-only benefits, including custom branding and UI options, priority SLA-backed support, long-term maintenance (LTS) releases, plus team management tools, training resources, and the ability to request new features tailored to your needs.

For up to date and detailed information, be sure to check out Assistant Engine Documentation..

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Key Features

• Multi-Model AI Support - Run and interact with multiple local models via Ollama.
• Deep C# Comprehension - Powered by Semantic Kernel and custom chunking strategies.
• RAG with Vector Stores - Retrieve from code, text, and database schema.
• Text-to-SQL - Convert natural language into SQL queries.
• Local PowerShell Execution - AI-assisted automation and scripting.
• Database Integration - MSSQL, SQL Server, and Postgres supported.
• Privacy First - All features run locally, offline, and secure.

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Quick Start (Binary Release)

• Download Assistant Engine - Windows and macOS builds

• Install Ollama - Only required if you want to run models locally.

  (By default, Assistant Engine comes with preconfigured remote assistants so you can try it immediately.)

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Local Development Guide

Assistant Engine is built to run natively across Web, Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android - all from a single .NET 9 codebase. Whether you're interested in extending its AI features, improving the UI, or building new developer tools, your contributions are welcome.

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Prerequisites

Before you begin, make sure your development environment is ready:

• Visual Studio (recommended)

• .NET 9 SDK installed

• In the Visual Studio Installer, ensure the following workloads are enabled:

  • ASP.NET and web development
  • .NET Multi-platform App UI (MAUI)

• Ollama:

  • Connect to an existing Ollama server, or install Ollama locally

• AI Templates: Install Microsofts AI project templates with:

  dotnet new install Microsoft.Extensions.AI.Templates

Note

Common setup issue: Make sure .NET Multi-platform App UI development is checked in the Visual Studio installer.

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Setting Up Your Local Environment

1. Clone the Repository Open a terminal and run:

   git clone https://github.com/Assistant Engine/Assistant Engine.git

2. Open in Visual Studio Open Assistant Engine.sln. You'll see three main projects:

   Project	Description
   AssistantEngine.Web	Blazor-based web application interface.
   AssistantEngine.UI	Shared Razor Class Library (RCL) with core logic and UI components.
   AssistantEngine.App	.NET MAUI app (Windows, macOS, iOS, Android) with WebView2 hosting the Assistant Engine experience.

   Run this once at the project root to restore workloads:

   dotnet workload restore

3. Run the Application

   • To run the full cross-platform client: start AssistantEngine.App
   • To run only the web interface: start AssistantEngine.Web

And that's it, you're ready to start building with Assistant Engine!