Skills are instruction packages that teach an AI agent to execute a specific task the right way. In general, each skill lives in a folder with a text file and, if needed, supporting scripts and templates.

How it works

The agent does not load all skills at once. It sees a short list with the name and description of each one. When the task matches a description, it opens the full skill and follows the step by step.

This saves space in the context window, because only what is needed at the moment is brought in. The exact format varies from tool to tool, so check the documentation for the one you use.

A skill usually has:

  • A name and a description of when to use it.
  • Instructions in Markdown.
  • Support files, such as examples and scripts.

Practical example

You have a fixed way to publish posts on your company's blog: short title, summary of up to 155 characters, cover image and final review. Instead of repeating this every time in the prompt, you create a skill.

Markdown · skills/publicar-post/SKILL.md
---
name: publicar-post
description: Use quando for publicar um post no blog.
---

1. Escreva o título com até 60 caracteres.
2. Crie um resumo de até 155 caracteres.
3. Confira a imagem de capa antes de publicar.

Now, whenever you ask for a post, the agent finds the skill and follows the process.

What it's for

Skills are used to:

  • Standardize repetitive tasks, such as reviewing code, writing documents or running deploys.
  • Share the team's way of working without depending on each person remembering everything.
  • Keep the main prompt short, leaving details for when they are needed.

In flows with multiple agents, like those orchestrated by bridgecode, each agent can use the right skills for its role.

Cautions

A skill is an instruction that the agent will follow, and it can include scripts. Use only skills from trusted sources and read the content before installing, because a malicious skill can induce the agent to do something improper.

Difference between skills and AGENTS.md

AGENTS.md brings general project rules, read from the start. Skills deal with specific tasks and are only opened when necessary. The two complement each other: general rules in one file, specialized procedures in skills.