---
title: Overview
description: Lookout runs coding agents in your projects, on the model plans you sign in to, from a Mac app or a terminal.
canonical_url: https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/docs
type: overview
section: Get started
last_updated: 2026-10-21
related:
  - https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/docs/quickstart
  - https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/docs/mac-app
  - https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/docs/cli
---

> Every page of these docs: https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/llms.txt

# Overview

Lookout runs coding agents in your projects, on the model plans you sign in to, from a Mac app or a terminal.

You give Lookout a task in a project folder. The agent reads, edits and runs your code there, shows each step as it
works, and records your files before every turn so you can review or undo what it changed. It runs on the plans you
already have with model providers, and you can switch models in the middle of a chat.

An account needs an invitation.

## Install

### Mac app

The Mac app runs on Macs with Apple silicon.

1. Open [Download](https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/download) on Lookout's site, and sign in when it asks.
2. Click **Download**, open the disk image, and drag Lookout into Applications.
3. Before the first launch, run this once in Terminal:

   ```sh
   xattr -cr /Applications/Lookout.app
   ```

[Quickstart](https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/docs/quickstart) walks from here to your first reviewed change.

### CLI

The `lookout` command runs on Linux and macOS, on x64 and arm64:

```sh
curl -fsSL https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/install.sh | sh
```

The installer also signs the machine in to your account. If it can't, run `lookout login`. Provider sign-ins happen in
the Mac app and reach the machine through your account; without one, it runs the free models and providers
whose key is in its environment ([Providers on this machine](https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/docs/cli#providers)). [CLI](https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/docs/cli) covers the rest.

## What you can do

### Learn a codebase

Open a project and ask about it. The agent reads the files it needs to answer.

```text
Give me a tour of this workspace: its structure, the key modules and how they fit together.
```

### Make a change and review it

The agent edits files and runs commands. When the turn ends, every change is in a diff you can review, keep or revert.

```text
Add a --dry-run flag to the deploy script that prints each command instead of running it, and test it.
```

### Ask without changes

In Ask mode the agent reads the code and runs commands to answer you, without changing files.

```text
Why does the export job finish with an empty file when the list has over 1000 rows?
```

### Run work on another machine

Chats can run on your other Macs and on your servers, started from the app or from a terminal.

```sh
lookout exec --on build-server -C '~/projects/api' "Run the test suite and fix the failing tests"
```

## Where to go

| What I want to do | Where |
|---|---|
| Install the app and make a first change | [Quickstart](https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/docs/quickstart) |
| Connect a provider and pick a model | [Models and providers](https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/docs/models) |
| Send, queue, steer and stop the agent's work | [Chats and projects](https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/docs/chats) |
| Choose what the agent may do | [Modes](https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/docs/modes) |
| Review or undo the agent's changes | [Checkpoints and changes](https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/docs/checkpoints) |
| Give a chat its own branch | [Worktrees](https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/docs/worktrees) |
| Tell the agent how to work in a project | [Rules](https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/docs/rules) |
| Run chats on a server | [Machines](https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/docs/machines) |
| Use Lookout from a terminal or a script | [CLI](https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/docs/cli) |
| Fix a problem | [Troubleshooting](https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/docs/troubleshooting) |

## Next steps

- [Quickstart](https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/docs/quickstart): from an invitation to a reviewed change.
- [Mac app](https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/docs/mac-app): updates, dictation, logs and what the app does on your Mac.

## Related

- [Quickstart](https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/docs/quickstart.md): From an invitation to a reviewed change, and back again, in eight steps.
- [Mac app](https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/docs/mac-app.md): Install the Mac app, keep it up to date, and find its logs.
- [CLI](https://lookout.itoowasinarcadia.com/docs/cli.md): The lookout command on Linux and macOS: install it, sign in, run chats, and use it in scripts.