Amazon Kiro is a smart development environment that can quickly turn an idea into production code through “spec coding”.
Amazon Web Services (AWS) introduces Kiro, a new development environment with built-in AI agents designed to help software developers move from idea to usable code faster.
From Prompt to Working Software
Kiro supports vibe coding: developers describe in natural language what they want to build, after which an AI assistant gets to work. A new concept is ‘spec coding’, where AI agents incorporate specifications via a single prompt. An example could be, “Add a review system”, which leads to a document with requirements and associated sub-tasks. These tasks are automatically converted into working code, including issues, test scenarios, and accessibility requirements.
Automatic Testing and Documentation
In addition to specs, Kiro also introduces “hooks”. These would respond to code changes and allow AI agents to automatically update test files, adjust documentation, or perform a security scan. This way, Kiro should automatically maintain code quality and consistency within a team.
Kiro also supports the Model Context Protocol (MCP), which allows developers to connect external AI tools to the environment. According to AWS, this is “a first step towards making collaboration between humans and machines in software development less fragmented and cumbersome.” Those who prefer to work in a more traditional way can, of course, also simply use an agent chat within a file.
The tool supports most popular programming languages and is available in preview for Windows, macOS, and Linux.