digest

name	digest
description	Capture meaningful session state (current cursor, in-flight work, live hypotheses, open questions, do-NOT-carry-forward, success criteria) to state/digests/latest.md so the next session — including one after auto-compaction — can re-enter without re-discovering context cold. Distinct from /learnings (which captures surprises). Validates against docs/contracts/digest-schema.json.
allowed-tools	Bash, Read, Write, Edit
last_verified	"2026-05-14T00:00:00.000Z"
karpathy_rules	["R1-think-before-coding","R4-goal-driven-execution"]

/digest

Captures the meaningful state of the current session to state/digests/latest.md. The .claude/hooks/sessionstart-digest.ps1 hook reads it on the next session start and emits it as additionalContext for the model. Pairs with .claude/hooks/precompact-digest.ps1 which provides a metadata-only fallback when /digest isn't invoked before auto-compaction.

When to run

• Before compaction is imminent (context feels >60% full).
• At a natural breakpoint — after finishing a feature, before a risky operation, before handing off to another agent.
• Before launching long-running background work.

Do NOT invoke on every message or tool call.

What it captures

---
schema_version: 1
session_id: <session_id>
written_at: <RFC3339 UTC>
trigger: digest-skill
branch: <git branch>
head_sha: <short SHA>
head_subject: <commit subject>
open_pr: <"#N" or null>
last_model_update: <RFC3339 UTC>
success_criteria:
  - criterion: "<testable assertion for the Next action>"
    status: pending | in-progress | achieved | abandoned
    evidence: "<file:line | PR# | metric path | null>"
---

# Session digest — <branch> @ <sha>

## Next action

ONE imperative sentence. Must map 1:1 to `success_criteria` entries.

## In-flight

Work currently mid-execution. file/feature, step N of total, next sub-step.

## Live hypotheses

Working hypotheses to inherit. *Unconfirmed*; don't promote to MEMORY.md yet.

## Open questions

Numbered. Questions you would ask the user if they walked in now.

## Do NOT carry forward

**Highest-leverage field.** Things the next session must NOT re-propose.

## Prior success criteria status (Karpathy R4)

When a prior digest exists, this section reports the status delta:

- ✅ achieved: <prior criterion> — evidence: <file:line | commit | PR>
- ⏳ in-progress: <prior criterion> — last touched: <where>
- ⛔ abandoned: <prior criterion> — reason: <one sentence>

How to run

The frontmatter is generated by DigestState's Write-Digest (paths, git facts, escaping, schema validation, and counter reset all live there). You author only the body sections and the success_criteria — do not hand-write the --- frontmatter block.

1. Read existing state/digests/latest.md if present — preserve current sections.

2. Karpathy R4 — review/mark prior success criteria.

3. Synthesize the body (the #/## sections below) and write it to a temp file, e.g. state/digests/.body.tmp.md.

4. Derive 1–3 testable success_criteria from the Next action as a JSON array: [{"criterion":"…","status":"pending","evidence":null}].

5. Route through the module (it sets trigger: digest-skill, validates against docs/contracts/digest-schema.json, writes latest.md, and resets the staleness + mid counters):

   pwsh -NoProfile -Command "Import-Module .claude/hooks/DigestState.psm1 -Force; \
     Write-Digest -Kind digest -Trigger digest-skill \
       -BodyFile state/digests/.body.tmp.md \
       -SuccessCriteriaJson '<json array>' \
       -LastModelUpdate (Get-Date).ToUniversalTime().ToString('yyyy-MM-ddTHH:mm:ssZ')"
   

   A non-Valid result prints a warning naming the schema error — fix and re-run.

6. rm -f state/digests/.body.tmp.md.

7. Report: Digest updated: <branch>@<sha> · next: <one-line> · criteria: <N>.

Driving criteria autonomously with /goal

After writing the digest, consider /goal <condition> (native Claude Code v2.1.139+) for substantial autonomous work. /goal mechanizes Karpathy R4: a small fast model evaluates after every turn whether the condition holds and either fires another turn or clears the goal.

Use /goal when the Next action has:

• A verifiable end state (build green, tests pass, file count under budget)
• 5+ minutes of expected autonomous work
• An evaluator-checkable result (checked against the transcript — no tool calls)

Skip /goal for short tasks, visual/UX judgement, or ambiguous specs.

When /goal lands a "yes," the next /digest should mark the corresponding success_criteria entry as achieved with the /goal evidence.

Anti-patterns

• Transcript capture — git log is the transcript.
• Empty digest — if nothing changed, prior digest still applies.
• Forgetting "Do NOT carry forward".

Related

• /learnings — captures surprises into docs/solutions/.
• /correct — captures user corrections as permanent CLAUDE.md rules.
• .claude/hooks/{precompact,sessionstart}-digest.ps1 — auto-fallback + read-back.
• state/digests/README.md — directory layout.