Kotlin Toolchain update announced

In June 2026, JetBrains announced that the Kotlin Toolchain had officially transitioned to a new name, Amper, and was released in Alpha version 0.11. This version introduced the ability to publish JVM libraries, new plugin development APIs, and several improvements to the developer experience. By version 0.13, JetBrains now recommends the Kotlin Toolchain for most new Kotlin Multiplatform (KMP) projects.

Simplifying multiplatform development

Starting with Kotlin Multiplatform often involves working with unfamiliar platforms. Android developers may be discovering iOS for the first time, while other teams are expanding to the web or desktop applications. Each platform comes with its own tools and configuration requirements. The Kotlin Toolchain changes this by providing a single command-line interface (CLI) entry point for configuring the environment, creating, compiling, testing, and publishing KMP applications and libraries.

Enhancements and AI integration

Recent versions of the Kotlin Toolchain have refined the CLI and editor experience, added support for the web and CInterop, and included many improvements based on user feedback. JetBrains designed the toolchain to be reliable and easy to use, and its features—like automatic environment configuration and clear error messages—form an ideal foundation for AI agents. An MCP server with hot reloading and dedicated AI agent skills has been introduced, and these skills can now be installed using the command: npx skills add kotlin/kotlin-agent-skills.

New features in version 0.13

Version 0.13 introduces the kotlin new command, which offers an interactive configuration process similar to the Kotlin Multiplatform assistant. The kotlin init command remains available but now generates project files directly in the current directory. When using kotlin new, users are prompted to select the type of application and target platforms, making the setup process more intuitive.

Improved iOS and Android support

Configuring iOS applications on a clean machine is now smoother, with better Xcode installation diagnostics and automatic download of iOS simulator runtime environments. The Kotlin Toolchain also displays detailed progress bars in the CLI when downloading required tools like JDKs and compilers. For Android, the toolchain now automatically provisions missing SDK components when importing a project into an editor, reducing configuration errors.

Enhanced library publishing and performance

The Kotlin Toolchain now supports Swift Package Manager (SwiftPM) dependencies for Apple platforms, allowing modules to import Objective-C APIs from Swift or Objective-C code. It also improves multiplatform library publishing by including Compose Resources metadata and SwiftPM dependencies with compiled artifacts. Performance has been enhanced through caching of Kotlin/Native recompilations, reducing build times for native applications and tests.

Future roadmap for Kotlin Toolchain

JetBrains plans to include the Kotlin Toolchain in the Homebrew package manager with brew install kotlin, make AI skills more accessible, and support Swift Export once it is stable. In the near term, the team will focus on gathering feedback from new users and addressing gaps, particularly those related to existing Gradle projects, before recommending migrations to the new toolchain.