diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index 17cbc513..81f00bf2 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -97,10 +97,10 @@ pages:
 	$(MAKE) -C docs/site site
 
 agents:
-	scripts/llms/init_agents.py agents README.md "Links" "AI assistants" > AGENTS.md
+	scripts/llms/init_agents.py agents README.md "Links" "local LLVM" "AI assistants" > AGENTS.md
 
 claude:
-	scripts/llms/init_agents.py claude README.md "Links" "AI assistants" > CLAUDE.md
+	scripts/llms/init_agents.py claude README.md "Links" "local LLVM" "AI assistants" > CLAUDE.md
 
 run-tutorial:
 	marimo run docs/tutorials/xtc_101.py
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 8f49f91b..6936371a 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -52,6 +52,38 @@ Available extensions are:
 - `[default]`: mlir + tvm
 - `[dev]`: default + test
 
+### Using a local LLVM / MLIR build
+
+By default XTC uses the LLVM/MLIR toolchain shipped in its Python wheels. To
+use a local LLVM checkout instead (e.g. to test compiler changes), point XTC
+at your build directory (`$LLVM_BUILD` below). Two levels are possible.
+
+**Binaries only.** Override `opt`, `llc`, `mlir-opt` and `mlir-translate`
+while keeping the wheel's Python bindings — the simplest option, e.g. when
+your changes live in the LLVM middle-end / back-end:
+
+```bash
+export XTC_LLVM_PREFIX=$LLVM_BUILD   # providing bin/opt and bin/llc
+export XTC_MLIR_PREFIX=$LLVM_BUILD   # providing bin/mlir-opt and bin/mlir-translate
+```
+
+**Binaries and Python bindings.** The MLIR bindings are a native extension,
+so the interpreter must match the Python version they were built for (check
+the ABI tag under
+`$LLVM_BUILD/tools/mlir/python_packages/mlir_core/mlir/_mlir_libs`).
+Create a matching venv if, install XTC without the MLIR wheels, build the
+runtime support libraries, then prepend the bindings to `PYTHONPATH`:
+
+```bash
+uv venv -p 3.14 .venv-local && source .venv-local/bin/activate
+uv pip install -e '.[tvm]'
+
+export PYTHONPATH=$LLVM_BUILD/tools/mlir/python_packages/mlir_core:$PYTHONPATH
+export XTC_MLIR_PREFIX=$LLVM_BUILD
+export XTC_LLVM_PREFIX=$LLVM_BUILD
+export XTC_MLIR_TARGET=llvmir
+```
+
 ### Code quality
 
 Code quality requirements:
diff --git a/src/xtc/backends/mlir/MlirBindingsExtensions.py b/src/xtc/backends/mlir/MlirBindingsExtensions.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..ca4fb6cc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/xtc/backends/mlir/MlirBindingsExtensions.py
@@ -0,0 +1,43 @@
+#
+# SPDX-License-Identifier: BSD-3-Clause
+# Copyright (c) 2024-2026 The XTC Project Authors
+#
+"""Optional XTC extensions to the MLIR Python bindings."""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import importlib
+import logging
+
+logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
+
+# Optional XTC extensions to the MLIR Python bindings: the module to import
+# mapped to the pass-pipeline entries it contributes.
+_EXTENSIONS: dict[str, tuple[str, ...]] = {
+    "mlir.xtc_transform": ("func.func(reduce-extract-slices)",),
+}
+
+# Reverse map from a contributed pass to its providing module, so a pass can be
+# gated without the caller naming its extension.
+_PASS_OWNER: dict[str, str] = {}
+for _module, _module_passes in _EXTENSIONS.items():
+    for _pass in _module_passes:
+        assert _pass not in _PASS_OWNER, f"pass {_pass!r} declared by two extensions"
+        _PASS_OWNER[_pass] = _module
+
+# Extension modules that imported successfully, resolved once at import time.
+_loaded: set[str] = set()
+for _module in _EXTENSIONS:
+    try:
+        importlib.import_module(_module)
+        _loaded.add(_module)
+    except ImportError as _exc:
+        logger.debug("MLIR binding extension %r unavailable: %s", _module, _exc)
+
+
+def passes(pass_names: list[str]) -> list[str]:
+    """Return the subset of ``pass_names`` whose extension is available."""
+    for pass_name in pass_names:
+        if pass_name not in _PASS_OWNER:
+            raise KeyError(f"unknown extension pass: {pass_name!r}")
+    return [p for p in pass_names if _PASS_OWNER[p] in _loaded]
diff --git a/src/xtc/backends/mlir/MlirCompilerPasses.py b/src/xtc/backends/mlir/MlirCompilerPasses.py
index 20cee233..ae4ed40f 100644
--- a/src/xtc/backends/mlir/MlirCompilerPasses.py
+++ b/src/xtc/backends/mlir/MlirCompilerPasses.py
@@ -33,7 +33,8 @@
 )
 from mlir.passmanager import PassManager
 from mlir.ir import Module
-import mlir.xtc_transform
+
+import xtc.backends.mlir.MlirBindingsExtensions as binding_extensions
 
 # Import SDist if available
 try:
@@ -779,7 +780,6 @@ def run(self, pass_names: list[str]) -> None:
 
 
 def apply_bufferization_passes(mlir_program: RawMlirProgram, mlir_install_dir: str):
-    assert mlir.xtc_transform
     bufferize_options = [
         "bufferize-function-boundaries",
         "function-boundary-type-conversion=identity-layout-map",
@@ -787,9 +787,8 @@ def apply_bufferization_passes(mlir_program: RawMlirProgram, mlir_install_dir: s
     ]
 
     MlirProgramApplyPasses(mlir_program).run(
-        [
-            # xtc pass that folds extract slices to make smaller tensor.empty allocations
-            "func.func(reduce-extract-slices)",
+        binding_extensions.passes(["func.func(reduce-extract-slices)"])
+        + [
             "canonicalize",
             "cse",
             "eliminate-empty-tensors",  # causes ops to write directly to out buffer
diff --git a/src/xtc/backends/mlir/MlirTarget/MlirLLVMTarget.py b/src/xtc/backends/mlir/MlirTarget/MlirLLVMTarget.py
index 4ecc57c3..dd9ca109 100644
--- a/src/xtc/backends/mlir/MlirTarget/MlirLLVMTarget.py
+++ b/src/xtc/backends/mlir/MlirTarget/MlirLLVMTarget.py
@@ -123,7 +123,7 @@ def _lowering_pipeline(self) -> list[str]:
             "sccp",
             # Data flow to LLVM
             "convert-math-to-llvm",
-            "convert-vector-to-llvm{enable-x86vector=true}",
+            "convert-vector-to-llvm",
             "convert-index-to-llvm",
             "convert-arith-to-llvm",
             "convert-ub-to-llvm",
diff --git a/src/xtc/search/explore.py b/src/xtc/search/explore.py
index e0cb9c57..58bedf25 100644
--- a/src/xtc/search/explore.py
+++ b/src/xtc/search/explore.py
@@ -118,9 +118,11 @@ def __post_init__(self):
             self.operator = None
             self.func_name = None
 
-        # Workaround to ensure that TVM backend is after MLIR backends,
-        # otherwise the import of tvm breaks the MLIR python bindings
-        self.backends = sorted(self.backends)
+        # Workaround to ensure that the TVM backend is imported before the MLIR
+        # backends: loading the MLIR wheel's LLVM first and tvm's LLVM second
+        # re-registers an LLVM command-line option and aborts. reverse=True puts
+        # "tvm" ahead of "mlir".
+        self.backends = sorted(self.backends, reverse=True)
 
         if self.operator:
             if not self.func_name: