How it works in Copilot CLI
Run copilot as always. Copilot CLI draws full screen and makes the selection itself: drag over
text, and peekme reads it, also over SSH. Then press Alt+P. A click on underlined text opens the
saved answer.
Which model explains
No API key is needed. On the first explanation peekme starts Copilot's headless server
(copilot --headless, the one the Copilot SDK uses) with your GitHub login. Each explanation is
a short session without tools, and peekme deletes it afterwards, so nothing appears in your
session list. It uses a little of your AI credits for each explanation.
A peek uses Copilot's Auto model. A typed question (Alt+Shift+P) uses the model your chat runs on, with the whole conversation. To change either model:
export PEEKME_COPILOT_MODEL=<model> # peeks, default Auto
export PEEKME_COPILOT_ASK_MODEL=<model> # questions, default the chat's model
/model in Copilot CLI shows the names. peekme knows the conversation from Copilot's session log
in ~/.copilot/session-state.
peekme and /ask
Copilot CLI's own /ask (also /btw) answers a typed side question in a separate dialog,
without adding it to the history. It is good for a question about the work. peekme is for the
words in front of you: you select them instead of typing them, the answer opens right under them,
a box can open inside a box, and the answer stays on the screen as an underline. Use both.
A closer comparison
What gets peekme
copilot, copilot -i "prompt" and copilot --resume open with peekme. copilot -p,
copilot login and anything with output going to a pipe or a file run Copilot directly.
command copilot starts plain Copilot CLI once.
Tested with Copilot CLI 1.0.93 on Linux, also inside tmux and over SSH.
peekme also works in Claude Code, Codex CLI, Kiro CLI, with the same keys.