GitHub Copilot adds Agent Mode, expands AI capabilities

Developer platform GitHub has introduced Agent Mode for GitHub Copilot, giving its AI-powered coding assistant the ability to iterate on its own code, recognise errors, and fix them automatically. 

“Today, we are infusing the power of agentic AI into the GitHub Copilot experience, elevating Copilot from pair to peer programme,” wrote GitHub CEO Thomas Dohmke on X while announcing the launch. 

Alongside this, Copilot Edits is now generally available in Visual Studio Code, and GitHub has provided a first look at Project Padawan, an autonomous AI-driven software engineering agent.

“The name [Copilot] reflects our belief that artificial intelligence (AI) isn’t replacing the developer. Instead, it’s always on their side. And like any good first officer, a Copilot can also fly by itself,” read their statement. 

Agent Mode Now in Preview

Agent Mode enhances Copilot’s ability to handle complex coding tasks autonomously. It can refine its own output, detect and fix errors, suggest terminal commands, and analyse runtime issues with self-healing capabilities. To access it, developers need VS Code Insiders and must enable the Copilot Agent setting.

Copilot Edits Now Available in VS Code

Now available for all, Copilot Edits lets developers edit multiple files using natural language prompts. The AI makes inline changes, streamlining workflow across projects. It supports multiple AI models, including OpenAI’s GPT-4o, Anthropic’s Claude 3.5 Sonnet, and Google’s Gemini 2.0 Flash. A Visual Studio 2022 preview is also available.

GitHub is also developing Project Padawan, an AI Software Engineering (SWE) agent capable of handling coding tasks, reviewing code, and automating workflows. Developers will be able to assign GitHub Issues to Copilot, which will generate fully tested pull requests and respond to reviewer feedback. The system will operate in a secure cloud sandbox.

As announced, GitHub plans to expand Agent Mode to more IDEs and improve Project Padawan. Developers can try these features in VS Code Insiders and share feedback through GitHub’s official channels.

Last month, at the Microsoft AI Tour in Bengaluru, GitHub’s director of international developer relations, Karan MV, showcased how Copilot Workspace can comprehend and generate code in Indian languages, including Hindi and Kannada.

Dohmke also highlighted how Copilot Workspace is transforming software development in local languages. “As always, Karan MV demonstrated the power of Copilot Workspace—building with agents in Kannada. This is the way. Every developer will conduct a symphony of AI agents in natural language,” he said.