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Hands-on with Gemini CLI

Last updated: Sep 17, 2025

1. Introduction

In this Lab, you will learn about Gemini CLI, an open-source AI agent that brings the power of Gemini directly into your terminal.

The Gemini CLI project is:

  • A lightweight, powerful, and accessible CLI tool that integrates cutting-edge AI directly into the terminal
  • It is a powerful AI agent that automates tasks, write code, and debug issues.
  • Connects to Google Search and MCP servers like GitHub.
  • Gemini CLI is open-source and you can view the public roadmap here.

What you'll learn

  • Installing and configuring Gemini CLI
  • Exploring tools, built-in commands and configuring MCP Servers in Gemini CLI
  • Customizing Gemini CLI via the GEMINI.md file
  • Exploring a few use cases with Gemini CLI

What you'll need

This lab can be run entirely within Google Cloud Shell, which comes pre-installed with Gemini CLI.

Alternatively, if you prefer to work on your own machine, there is a section to install Gemini CLI locally.

You would need the following:

  • Chrome web browser
  • A Gmail account

This lab is designed for users and developers of all levels (including beginners). The use cases in the lab have been categorized into developer and non-developer tasks. The developer use cases demonstrate how to vibe code with Gemini CLI and working with a Github repository to perform common development tasks like code explanation/understanding, generating documentation, fixing issues and more. It is recommended that you complete these use cases in the lab. There is an optional section at the end that covers several every day tasks that are non-developer focused.