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Kitty graphics: transmit

Category: extensions · Baseline: rich · Tags: Kitty Extensions · Specification ↗

The transmit action (a=t) sends image data to the terminal for storage without displaying it. The terminal assigns an image ID and acknowledges receipt. This is the foundation of the kitty graphics protocol — images are transmitted once and can be displayed multiple times at different positions.
How this is testedautomated
Transmit a 1x1 PNG with a=t and a unique image ID. Check for acknowledgment response (APC G ... ST).

The same probe runs against headless backends (via Termless) and real terminal apps (via a daemon launched in each terminal). This lets us distinguish parser correctness from rendering correctness.

Analysis2026-04-06

Supported by 8 of 12 terminals (67%). Not supported by: vt100.js, Alacritty, WezTerm, xterm.js. Part of the Rich TUI baseline.

Supported by 10 of 14 backends (71%)

Terminal Applications

TerminalVersionSupportNotes
iTerm23.6.9✓ yes
Ghostty1.3.1✓ yes
VS Code✓ yes
Warp✓ yes
Cursor✓ yes
Terminal.app✓ yes

Headless Backends

Parser correctness only — a means the parser accepts the sequence.

BackendVersionSupportNotes
Kitty0.40.0✓ yes
vterm0.2.0✓ yes
Alacritty0.26.0✗ noKitty graphics not implemented in alacritty
vt100.js0.2.1✗ noNot implemented — pure TypeScript emulator
WezTerm0.1.0-fork.5✗ noKitty graphics not implemented in wezterm-term crate
xterm.js5.5.0✗ noKitty graphics protocol not implemented in xterm.js