Google’s New AI Coder is FREE and Insanely Powerful
Hey everyone!
So, you have to hear this. Google just dropped a new open-source tool called the Gemini CLI and honestly, it’s a total game-changer for anyone who writes code or is even just curious about AI.
Think of it as a super-smart AI assistant that lives inside your computer’s terminal (that black screen where developers type commands).
The craziest part?
Google is basically giving away its most powerful AI, Gemini 1.5 Pro, for us to use with this tool… for FREE.
I’ve been playing around with it and I’m so excited to break it all down for you.
We’ll cover what makes it so special, how you can get it (it’s super easy), and then we’ll do what really matters:
put it to the test on some real coding projects.
By the end, you’ll know if this is something you should be using.
Let’s dive in!
So, What’s the Big Deal with Gemini CLI?
First off, what even is a “CLI tool”?
Imagine instead of clicking on icons, you just type what you want your computer to do. That’s a command-line interface (CLI).
It’s a super direct and powerful way to work.
Now, imagine having a genius AI, like Gemini, waiting for your command right there. You can either have an ongoing chat with it (this is called “interactive mode”) or just ask it to do one-off tasks, like
“Hey, quickly answer this question for me.”
When I first heard about this,
I thought, “Hmm, I already use tools like GitHub Copilot in my code editor.
Is this different?” And the answer is a big YES.
Google is building an entire ecosystem. They have a tool for your code editor (called Code Assist), and now this for your terminal.
They want Gemini to be your helpful AI buddy, no matter where you’re working.
And because it’s open-source, it means a whole community of developers can contribute to it, making it better and better over time.
Let’s Talk About the “FREE” Part (Because It’s Wild)
Okay, this is the part that really got me. As individual developers, Google is giving us:
Access to their top-tier model, Gemini 1.5 Pro.
Up to 60 requests every minute. That’s one request per second!
A whopping 1,000 requests every single day.
Let’s put that in perspective.
Gemini 1.5 Pro can understand a massive amount of information at once (what we call a “context window”).
We’re talking about a million “tokens,” which is like 750,000 words. If you were to pay for that kind of power normally, a single large request could cost you around $3.
With Gemini CLI, you can make dozens of these massive requests for free.
You could literally ask it to read a whole book and summarize it for you, over and over again.
You’re easily getting what could be hundreds of dollars worth of AI power every day. It’s unbelievable.
What Can It Actually Do?
This is where it gets really fun. Here are some of the coolest features I’ve tested.
1. It Can Google Things For You!
This sounds simple, but it’s awesome. While you’re deep in your code, you can just ask your terminal,
“Hey, what’s the weather in San Francisco today?”
and it will use Google Search and give you the answer right there. No need to switch windows and break your focus.
2. It Can Connect to Other Tools (Like Magic!)
This is where my mind really started to bend. You can connect Gemini CLI to other services to generate media.
Think of asking it to create things using Google’s other powerful AI tools like Imagen (for images), Veo (for video), or even Lyria (for music). The demo they showed was someone typing,
“Make me a 30-second video of a cat.” The AI first created an image of a cat, then used another tool to turn that image into a video, and saved it to the computer.
All from a single command!
3. It Can Read and Change Your Code… All of It!
This is the main event for developers. You can literally just say, Hey, look at my ‘profile-page.js’ file.
Something is wrong with the scrolling. It will read the file, figure out the problem, and suggest a fix. It’s smart enough to handle huge codebases, even ones that are bigger than its massive 1 million token context window.
You can even use it to automate complex developer tasks, like checking on the status of pull requests.
You can also give it a “memory” by creating a special file (gemini.markdown). In this file, you can give it rules like,
“Hey, my project uses this specific style of coding,” or “Never use this command.”
It learns how you like to work and gets better over time.
4. It Understands More Than Just Text (It’s Multimodal!)
This is one of the coolest parts.
You aren’t just limited to typing. You can give Gemini CLI a PDF document, a screenshot, or even a rough sketch of a website on a napkin, and it can understand it and generate a brand new application based on that image.
The possibilities are just mind-boggling.
How to Get Started
Convinced? Getting it running is super simple and takes just a couple of minutes.
Prerequisite:
First, make sure you have Node.js (version 20 or higher) installed on your computer.
It’s a common JavaScript runtime that you can grab from their official site if you don’t have it.
Install the Tool:
Open your terminal and type this command:
npm install -g @google/gemini-cliThis installs the tool globally on your computer, so you can run it from anywhere.
(If you just want to try it once without installing, you can use npx @google/gemini-cli instead).
Log In:
The first time you run the gemini command, it will ask you to log in.
Just choose “Login with Google” and sign in with your personal Google account to get all those free credits.
And that’s it!
You’re ready to start commanding your own AI assistant.
Putting It to the Test
Alright, talk is cheap :P.
I wanted to see if this thing could actually handle the messy, real-world coding tasks I deal with every day.
So, I ran three tests.
Test 1: The Simple Bug Fix
The Problem: I had a page in an app where you couldn’t scroll all the way to the bottom. A classic, annoying little bug.
My Prompt: I told Gemini, Hey my profile page… something is wrong with scrolling and it won’t let me see the bottom of the page.
The Result: In seconds, it analyzed the code and correctly identified the issue. It took less than a minute. Check!
Bug Fix Workflow:
Test 2: The Big Kahuna — Building a Whole New Feature
The Challenge: Okay, time for a real test. I wanted to add a brand-new “Memory” feature to a chat application I’m building. This is a pretty big task — it involves database changes, new UI pages, and updating the backend logic.
My Process (The AI-Driven Way): I gave Gemini a detailed prompt, including a screenshot. It came back with a multi-step plan, which I reviewed and approved. Then, I just told it: Okay, go.
The Result: I was floored. Gemini CLI started writing code, creating files, updating the database, and building the UI. When it hit an error, it fixed it itself. In about two minutes, the entire feature was built. This would have taken me hours. HUGE check!
New Feature Workflow:
Test 3: Starting From Zero — Can It Build a Website from an Idea?
The Ultimate Test: I started with a completely empty folder and asked it to create a brand new landing page for me… for the YouTube creator AI with Brandon. I told it to research the channel and make the website “beautiful and modern.”
The Result: It immediately used its Google Search tool to research my channel, analyzed my content, and came back with a full content plan. I said, Proceed. It started creating the entire Next.js project from scratch, filling it with custom-written copy. It was building a complete, personalized website from a single, simple idea.
Website from Scratch Workflow:
Should You Be Using This?
Absolutely. Yes. 100%.
If you’re a developer, this is a no-brainer. The amount of power and time-saving potential Google is giving away for free is just staggering.
It’s like having a senior developer on call, ready to tackle anything from a tiny bug to building an entire feature from a sketch.
Even if you’re not a developer, it’s an incredible peek into the future of how we’ll interact with computers.
The setup is ridiculously simple, and the potential is limitless. I’m already making it a core part of my workflow. This is one of those tools that feels like a genuine leap forward.
Go give it a try! You’ll be amazed.
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