In this episode, James interviews Ben and Peng from the VS Code team to discuss orchestrating multiple AI agents within Visual Studio Code. The conversation provides actionable advice for integrating Copilot agents into daily development workflows.

Orchestrating Multiple AI Agents in VS Code: Insights from Ben & Peng

Host: James (VS Code Team) Guests: Ben & Peng (VS Code Product Team)

Overview

This episode dives deep into recent advancements in AI-powered development within Visual Studio Code (VS Code). Specifically, the team discusses:

• The evolution from Copilot Free to complex AI agent orchestration inside VS Code
• How the new agent sessions UI enables parallel workflows
• The architectural and practical differences between local, background, and cloud agents
• Ways developers can leverage agents for greater productivity

Key Discussion Points

Agent Flavors

• Interactive Local Agents: For contextual, chat-based problem solving
• Background Agents: For long-running, delegated tasks
• Cloud Agents: For scalable and resource-intensive operations hosted in the cloud

Why Orchestration Matters

• Developers can now run multiple agent sessions in parallel for different tasks
• The UI treats each agent session like an inbox item to triage, increasing developer productivity
• Output artifacts can include code, tests, screenshots, video, and more, improving review and feedback loops

Practical Tips

• Build context and clarify intent through local chat agents before delegating
• Harden projects by integrating linting and automated tests, improving agent reliability
• Expect more than just code completions: agent results can be documentation, test cases, or other media

Workflow Insights

• Use parallel session management to break down complex tasks
• Triage agent outputs just like reviewing email or pull requests
• Adopt best practices for using cloud resources efficiently when working with cloud agents

Future Directions in VS Code

• Expect the VS Code environment to further enhance agent and Copilot integration
• Improved user experience for session management, feedback, and workflow customization

Resources & Links

• v1.108 VS Code Release Notes
• VS Code Agents Overview
• Background Agents
• Cloud Agents

Chapters

• 00:00:00 Intro & Team Introductions
• 00:05:00 Agents History & Evolution
• 00:10:00 Agent Types: Local, Background, Cloud
• 00:16:00 UX & Session Management
• 00:22:30 Testing, Artifacts, and Code Review
• 00:28:00 Using Sessions Today
• 00:37:00 Wrap-up

For more, subscribe to the VS Code Insiders Podcast or follow the VS Code team on their social channels.