How IntelliJ IDEA 2026.1 Turns Your IDE into an AI Open Platform

ACP Protocol: Plug Any AI Agent into IDEA

IntelliJ IDEA 2026.1 adds the open ACP (Agent Communication Protocol) so that any agent supporting ACP—such as OpenAI Codex, Cursor, or custom agents—can be installed from the new ACP Registry and run directly inside the IDE, enabling tasks like database queries or Git operations without leaving the editor.

Git Worktree: Write Code While Agents Run Tasks

IDEA now supports Git worktrees, allowing multiple branches to be checked out simultaneously into separate directories that share a single .git history. Unlike traditional branches, worktrees let you work in parallel without stashing changes, and the same capability is already used by AI‑enhanced IDEs like Cursor and Claude Code.

Database Access: Let Agents Query Your Data Directly

Agents such as Codex or Claude can now connect to data sources configured in IDEA, execute SQL queries, and return analysis results. For example, you can ask an agent to find abnormal orders in the last seven days, and it will retrieve and analyze the data without manual export, though production databases should be given read‑only access.

Completion and Edit Suggestions

The new "next edit suggestion" feature is now a native IDE capability that does not consume AI quota. When you modify a method signature, the IDE automatically highlights all call sites that need updating, driven by static analysis rather than a large language model.

Command completion is also expanded: typing .. opens a searchable command list that includes AI actions and configuration files, eliminating the need to navigate menus.

Spring Developer Updates

Spring Runtime Insight shows runtime bean injection details, security configurations, and property values directly in the editor, removing the need for breakpoints or manual config inspection.

Goodbye WebStorm: Web Features Now in Community Edition

From 2026.1 onward, the free Community edition includes many web‑development capabilities that previously required an Ultimate subscription:

JavaScript, TypeScript, HTML, CSS code completion and navigation

Basic React support (component completion, prop navigation, rename refactoring)

Automatic import management

Built‑in Prettier, ESLint, TSLint, StyleLint support

Direct execution of NPM scripts

Vite project generator

Developers building Spring Boot back‑ends with React or Vue front‑ends can now use a single IDE without purchasing Ultimate, provided they do not need advanced debugging or full Angular/Vue support.