name

jules-skill

description

Use this skill whenever Jules (Google's async AI coding agent) is mentioned or implied. Triggers include: starting a new Jules coding task ("kick off", "create a session"), checking Jules session status or progress, reading a message Jules left, approving or rejecting a Jules plan, replying to Jules mid-task, and scanning for sessions in states like AWAITING_PLAN_APPROVAL or AWAITING_USER_FEEDBACK. Also triggers on bare Jules session IDs (long numeric strings) or any request to monitor, manage, or respond to Jules activity across repos.

Jules Skill

Overview

This skill drives Jules via the jules_cli CLI. All API calls are made through shell commands — no MCP server needed.

Jules is an async coding agent powered by Gemini 2.5 Pro. It clones your repo into a secure Google Cloud VM, generates a multi-step plan, executes it autonomously, and optionally opens a PR.

Prerequisites

Step 1 — Install the CLI (required before any command will work):

npm install -g @l0r3x/jules-cli

This makes the jules_cli command available globally.

Step 2 — Set your API key via one of:

Interactive setup: jules_cli setup (prompts for key, saves to ~/.config/jules/config.json)
Environment variable: export JULES_API_KEY=<your-key>

CLI Command Reference

Command	Description
`jules_cli list [--json]`	List all Jules sessions
`jules_cli show <id> [--json]`	Get session details and state
`jules_cli create --repo owner/repo --prompt "..." [--auto-pr] [--approve-plan] [--json]`	Create a new Jules session
`jules_cli approve <id>`	Approve Jules's plan to proceed
`jules_cli send <id> --message "..." [--json]`	Send feedback or instructions
`jules_cli last-msg <id> [--json]`	Jules's latest outbound message
`jules_cli pr-url <id>`	Get the PR URL from a completed session
`jules_cli setup`	Interactive API key setup

Most Common Pattern: Sweep AWAITING Sessions

When the user mentions Jules activity or asks you to "check Jules", always start here:

1. jules_cli list --json
2. Filter: state contains "AWAITING"
3. For each hit:
   - jules_cli last-msg <id>  → read Jules's question/plan
   - AWAITING_PLAN_APPROVAL  → jules_cli approve <id>  (or jules_cli send <id> --message "..." to cancel)
   - AWAITING_USER_FEEDBACK  → jules_cli send <id> --message "your reply"

If the user says "jules # updated" or pastes a session ID, go straight to jules_cli show <id> then jules_cli last-msg <id>.

Task-Based Workflow

1. Creating a Session

Autopilot (Jules creates PR automatically):

jules_cli create --repo owner/repo --prompt "Your task" --auto-pr

Interactive (review plan before execution):

jules_cli create --repo owner/repo --prompt "Your task" --approve-plan

2. Listing & Checking Sessions

jules_cli list
jules_cli show <id>

States:

IN_PROGRESS — Jules is actively working
AWAITING_PLAN_APPROVAL — waiting for you to approve the plan
AWAITING_USER_FEEDBACK — Jules has a question mid-execution
COMPLETED — Jules finished (PR may or may not exist)
FAILED — unrecoverable error
WAITING_FOR_USER_INPUT — alias for AWAITING_USER_FEEDBACK (older sessions)

3. Responding to Jules

# Approve a plan
jules_cli approve <id>

# Answer a question or send instructions
jules_cli send <id> --message "Your reply here"

# Read Jules's latest message first
jules_cli last-msg <id>

4. Getting the PR

jules_cli pr-url <id>

Autonomous Monitoring Loop

1. jules_cli list --json  → filter where state starts with "AWAITING"
2. For each AWAITING session:
   a. jules_cli show <id>  to confirm current state
   b. AWAITING_PLAN_APPROVAL → jules_cli last-msg <id> to review → jules_cli approve <id> or jules_cli send <id> --message "..." to cancel
   c. AWAITING_USER_FEEDBACK → jules_cli last-msg <id> to read Jules's question → jules_cli send <id> --message "reply"
3. Repeat on a schedule (e.g. every 10–15 min)

last-msg caveat: returns Jules's last outbound message, which may be stale. Always check state first — if state just changed to AWAITING_USER_FEEDBACK, the message is fresh. If you already replied and state is still AWAITING, Jules hasn't processed your answer yet.

Decision Heuristics

Situation	Action
Jules reports an import / symbol IS used	Close without changes — issue is stale
Jules reports tests already exist	Close without changes — issue is stale
Jules asks about scope ("should I also fix X?")	Reply: strictly scope to the one file/import listed
Jules asks "class method or standalone function?"	Match the existing file structure
Jules asks about trailing whitespace preservation	No need to preserve — clean output preferred
Jules asks about benchmark scripts	Not needed — correctness changes don't need benchmarks
Jules's plan matches the task description	`jules_cli approve <id>`
Two sessions targeting the same file+lines	Approve the first, tell the second to stand down
Jules asks to confirm PR creation	Reply: "Yes, create the PR now."
Jules asks "do you approve this approach?" for no-op	Reply: "Yes, approved."

Prompt Engineering Tips

Be specific: Include file names, function names, and expected outcomes.
Scope tightly: Jules works best on self-contained tasks.
Use --approve-plan for non-trivial or risky tasks.

Always append constraints relevant to your project:

Constraints:
- Do NOT commit one-time patch/migration scripts.
- Only include files directly required by the task.
- Do not add docstrings or comments to code you didn't change.

Prompt Templates

Debugging

// Help me fix {specific error} in {file}:{function}
// Trace why {value} is undefined in {file}

Refactoring

// Refactor {file} from {x} to {y}
// Convert this callback-based code into async/await in {file}

Testing

// Add integration tests for {endpoint} in {file}
// Write a Pytest fixture to mock {external API call}

Onboarding

// What's going on in this repo?

AGENTS.md

Jules automatically reads AGENTS.md from the repo root. Keep it up to date with testing patterns, coding conventions, and environment setup — it's Jules's primary source of project context.

Resources

jules_cli: npm install -g @l0r3x/jules-cli or npx @l0r3x/jules-cli
Jules: jules.google.com