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The Elephant-Goldfish Model (EGM) is installed as a complete plugin in your AI coding harness, then used as a specification-review workflow rather than as a conventional pull-request reviewer. Choose the command for Antigravity, Claude Code, or Codex; install the full package so its shared agents and document standards are present; then run /egm-brainstorm, /egm-draft, and /egm-review. Goldfish reviewers receive a fresh context and challenge the design before implementation. A person still approves the design and owns the resulting code.
This guide shows the installation path for each documented host, explains what configuration is actually required, and sets expectations about the review process. It also distinguishes hosts with automated installation and isolation checks from hosts whose cloud verification remains incomplete.
What is the Elephant-Goldfish Model, and what does it review?
EGM is an open-source plugin for spec-driven development with AI coding agents. Its two roles divide the work deliberately:
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- Elephant: a context-rich session that explores a concept and develops a usable specification.
- Goldfish: one or more reviewers started with fresh, isolated context so they can challenge the specification without inheriting the authoring session’s assumptions.
The documented review target is a design specification, normally a living document under docs/designs/. EGM is not presented as a general pull-request, generated-code-diff, or static-analysis replacement. If you want a reviewer to inspect an already-generated patch, you still need the code-review facilities of your host and your normal human review process.
The Goldfish Protocol evaluates a design in three stages:
- Comprehension: a stateless reviewer explains the design back. If it cannot do that, the specification is ambiguous or incomplete.
- Antagonistic review: skeptical reviewer instances search for edge cases, hidden dependencies, and logical gaps.
- Implementation readiness: a readiness reviewer checks whether the document contains enough concrete detail—such as file paths, data structures, and function signatures—for an agent to implement it.
Findings are returned to the Elephant session for resolution. You, not the plugin, decide which findings to accept and approve the design before implementation.
The project is released under the Apache 2.0 license. Its own documentation also says it is not an officially supported Google product, even though the project originated with Google engineers.
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Install EGM through the marketplace or plugin mechanism exposed by your particular harness. The commands are host-specific and are not interchangeable.
| Harness | Installation path | What to verify afterward |
|---|---|---|
| Antigravity | agy plugin install https://github.com/google/elephant-goldfish-model |
Confirm the plugin appears in the IDE’s plugin interface; the host also documents a /plugin route. |
| Claude Code | claude plugin marketplace add google/elephant-goldfish-model && claude plugin install egm@egm |
Check that the egm marketplace entry and plugin are enabled in the current session. |
| Codex | codex plugin marketplace add google/elephant-goldfish-model && codex plugin add egm@egm |
Confirm that the plugin is available to the project or workspace where you will run the commands. |
| Claude Cowork | Use the Claude.ai plugin surface or the Cowork plugin panel, selecting the marketplace google/elephant-goldfish-model. |
Verify that the plugin loads in the Cowork workspace and that fresh-context review is available. |
| ChatGPT | Use the current personal plugin-archive upload flow or the workspace marketplace import with the repository URL and the .agents/plugins path. |
Follow the host’s current UI instructions; plugin and marketplace surfaces can change. |
Do not add a release number to these commands. No version pin was established in the reviewed documentation, so use the current installation instructions supplied by your host and the project.
How do I install EGM on Antigravity?
Antigravity has a direct command-line installation path and an IDE plugin interface.
- Open a terminal in an environment where the
agycommand is available. - Run
agy plugin install https://github.com/google/elephant-goldfish-model. - Open the IDE’s plugin interface, or use its documented
/pluginentry, and confirm that EGM is enabled. - Start or reopen the project session so the harness reloads the newly installed skills, personas, and shared resources.
- In a small test project, invoke
/egm-brainstormand confirm that the command is recognized before investing in a large design.
The Antigravity installation is considered one of the project’s more fully exercised paths: the harness documentation reports automated installation, reviewer-isolation, and end-to-end workflow fixtures for it. That status describes project verification, not a guarantee that every future host release will behave identically, so check the current harness guide if a command or menu has moved.
How do I install EGM on Claude Code?
Claude Code uses a two-part command: first add the project marketplace, then install the egm plugin from that marketplace.
- From a terminal with Claude Code configured, run
claude plugin marketplace add google/elephant-goldfish-model. - Install the plugin with
claude plugin install egm@egm. - Start a new Claude Code session or reload the current one so the newly registered commands are visible.
- Run
/egm-brainstormagainst a deliberately small concept and check that it creates the expected brief. - Continue to
/egm-draftonly after you can see the brainstorm command and its output in the project.
Claude Code is listed among the hosts that pass automated installation, fresh-review isolation, and end-to-end workflow fixtures in the project’s harness documentation. Keep the marketplace-add and plugin-install commands together in your setup notes; installing only one does not complete the process.
How do I install EGM in Codex?
Codex follows the same marketplace-then-plugin pattern but uses its own command names.
- Run
codex plugin marketplace add google/elephant-goldfish-model. - Install EGM with
codex plugin add egm@egm. - Open a fresh Codex session or reload the workspace.
- Invoke
/egm-brainstormand verify that the harness resolves the EGM command rather than treating it as ordinary text. - Inspect the generated brief before moving to the drafting stage.
Codex is also listed as passing the project’s automated installation, reviewer-isolation, and end-to-end workflow fixtures. Those fixtures test the documented integration at the time they run; they do not remove the need to verify the current Codex plugin interface after a host update.
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How do I install EGM in Claude Cowork?
Cowork uses a graphical plugin flow rather than the terminal commands shown for Claude Code.
- Open the Claude.ai plugin area or the Cowork plugin panel.
- Choose the marketplace identified as
google/elephant-goldfish-model. - Install the EGM plugin and wait for the host to report completion.
- Create or reopen a Cowork workspace where you intend to use the workflow.
- Test
/egm-brainstorm, then check whether the host can start a reviewer with a genuinely fresh context.
The project documents a working Cowork installation path, but its cloud trace verification has open gaps. Treat the command discovery and installation result as separate checks: a visible plugin does not by itself prove that the Goldfish reviewer was isolated from the authoring conversation.
How do I install EGM in ChatGPT?
ChatGPT has more than one documented route, and its labels can change as the host evolves.
- For a personal installation, use the current plugin-archive upload surface described by the host.
- For a workspace installation, open the marketplace import flow.
- Provide the repository URL and select the
.agents/pluginspath when the importer asks which plugin directory to use. - Finish the import, then reopen the workspace or conversation in which the plugin should run.
- Test
/egm-brainstormand separately test that a Goldfish review receives a new context.
The documented ChatGPT path is usable, but the project’s cloud trace verification remains incomplete. If the host exposes no way to prove that the reviewer starts without the Elephant session’s transcript, do not describe the result as an isolated Goldfish review; record the limitation and keep a human in the approval loop.
Why must I install the complete plugin instead of copying the skills folder?
Copying only skills/ is an incomplete installation. The skills read shared content from the plugin’s agents/ and resources/document_standards/ directories at runtime. Without those directories, commands can appear to exist while failing when they try to load personas, standards, or supporting instructions.
Use the host’s plugin installer or import the repository as a complete plugin package. A complete installation should contain, at minimum, the host-recognized manifest plus the shared skills, agents, and document-standard resources expected by the project. Avoid manually reconstructing a directory tree unless the current harness guide explicitly requires it.
After installation, test a command that exercises the shared resources rather than relying only on a marketplace “installed” badge. A successful brainstorm that produces a brief is a more useful smoke test than an entry in a settings screen.
What is the recommended EGM workflow after installation?
The normal sequence moves from exploration to specification, independent review, human approval, and only then implementation.
1. Explore the concept with /egm-brainstorm
Start the Elephant session with the problem, intended users, constraints, and known boundaries. The command is meant to clarify the concept and produce a brief, not to generate production code. Ask it to surface unknowns and decisions that must be made before design work begins.
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2. Create a living design with /egm-draft
Use the brief as input to a design document, typically stored under docs/designs/. The document should become concrete enough for another agent to understand the proposed behavior, affected files, interfaces, data structures, dependencies, and operational considerations.
3. Run the Goldfish checks with /egm-review
Start the review only after the draft contains a coherent proposal. Goldfish instances should receive the design in fresh context and perform the comprehension, antagonistic, and implementation-readiness checks. Read each finding as a prompt for a design decision, not as an automatic change request.
4. Resolve findings in the Elephant session
Return findings to the context-rich session that owns the design. Clarify ambiguous terms, add missing edge cases, document dependencies, or explicitly reject a suggestion with a reason. The goal is a design that a separate implementer can understand, not a document that avoids all criticism.
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Review the revised document yourself. Confirm that the scope, risk, interfaces, and trade-offs match the actual product decision. Approval is the hand-off point between specification and implementation.
6. Implement with the coding agent
Only after approval should the coding agent implement the design. EGM’s documented workflow makes the specification the review artifact; it does not transfer responsibility for implementation choices or production acceptance to the plugin.
7. Check drift later with /egm-drift-report
When code evolves, use the drift-report command to compare the design documents with the implementation. This is a later consistency check, not a substitute for ordinary tests, pull-request review, or runtime monitoring.
8. Document an existing codebase with /egm-bootstrap
For a project that lacks usable documentation, the bootstrap command can generate codebase documentation that gives future design sessions better context. Treat the generated material as a starting point and correct inaccuracies before relying on it.
The workflow guide allows the skills to be used out of order when a task demands it. For example, a team may bootstrap an unfamiliar repository before brainstorming a change, or run a drift report against an existing design before drafting a new one. The sequence above is the clearest default for a new feature.
What should a design document contain before I run a Goldfish review?
A reviewer can only test what the specification makes explicit. Before invoking /egm-review, check that the document covers the decisions an implementer would otherwise have to guess.
- Problem and scope: what is changing, who needs it, and what is explicitly out of scope.
- Behavior: normal flows, validation rules, error handling, and important edge cases.
- Interfaces: file paths, public functions, request and response shapes, events, or command contracts.
- Data: structures, persistence, migrations, ownership, and lifecycle rules.
- Dependencies: services, libraries, permissions, configuration, and assumptions about existing code.
- Operational concerns: logging, observability, rollback, security boundaries, and performance constraints where relevant.
- Acceptance criteria: observable conditions that establish whether the implementation matches the design.
This checklist is not a promise that EGM will detect every defect. It increases the chance that the readiness reviewer can identify missing implementation detail instead of merely reporting that the document is vague.
How can I tell whether a Goldfish reviewer really has fresh context?
Fresh context is a property of the host integration, not just a phrase in a prompt. A reviewer should receive the design and the inputs deliberately supplied for review, without inheriting the Elephant session’s hidden conversation history or unchallenged assumptions.
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- Record a distinctive assumption or unresolved question in the Elephant session.
- Run the review through the host’s documented EGM command.
- Inspect the review output for an independent comprehension statement and challenges that were not simply copied from the authoring conversation.
- Use the host’s trace, run, or session details—when available—to confirm that the reviewer was created separately.
- If the host cannot expose that evidence, label isolation as unverified and require a person to inspect the design and findings more carefully.
The project reports automated reviewer-isolation fixtures for Antigravity, Claude Code, and Codex. It reports open cloud trace verification gaps for Cowork and ChatGPT. Those distinctions matter when you describe the confidence of a review to teammates or auditors.
What commonly goes wrong during installation?
The command is not recognized
Confirm that you are using the command for the current harness, not a command copied from another host. Check that the host CLI or plugin panel is installed, that you are signed in to the intended workspace, and that the session was restarted after installation.
The plugin appears installed but commands fail at runtime
This usually indicates an incomplete package. Reinstall the complete plugin rather than copying only skills/, and verify that shared agents/ and resources/document_standards/ content is present.
/egm-brainstorm works but review cannot start
Check whether the design document was created in the project location the host can read, commonly under docs/designs/. Then verify that the host supports a separate fresh-context reviewer; a harness can load the skills while still lacking the isolation capability the Goldfish protocol expects.
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Stop treating the result as an independent Goldfish review. Recreate the review in a host mode that provides a fresh context, or document that isolation was not verified and perform an additional human review. Do not “fix” the problem by asking the same context to pretend it is independent.
Marketplace labels or import controls have changed
Use the current harness guide and host UI. Marketplace names, plugin panels, and cloud import paths are host-controlled surfaces and can change without changing EGM’s workflow concepts.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How does EGM fit with normal code review and testing?
EGM addresses design comprehension and implementation readiness before code exists. Conventional pull-request review examines the actual diff, tests, security changes, migration behavior, and operational impact. Automated tests, linters, type checkers, dependency scanners, and production monitoring answer still different questions.
Use the tools together: let EGM expose ambiguity and missing design decisions, let the coding agent implement an approved design, then use your normal engineering controls to verify the resulting code. Do not claim that an EGM review proves the generated code is correct, secure, performant, or free of defects.
Who is responsible for decisions made with EGM?
Human engineers retain responsibility for scope, architecture, risk acceptance, implementation approval, and operation of the system. EGM can make disagreements visible by separating the authoring context from skeptical reviewers, but it cannot determine whether a trade-off is acceptable for your product or organization.
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Keep the approved design, review findings, resolutions, and implementation review connected in your project history. That record makes it possible to explain why a finding was accepted, changed, or rejected and gives later maintainers a starting point for a drift report.
What support and verification should I expect from each host?
The project documentation distinguishes installation availability from the depth of automated verification.
| Host | Documented installation | Automated installation and isolation fixtures | Important qualification |
|---|---|---|---|
| Antigravity | Yes | Reported as passing | Recheck the current IDE command and plugin interface after host updates. |
| Claude Code | Yes | Reported as passing | Use the marketplace-add command before installing egm@egm. |
| Codex | Yes | Reported as passing | Use the Codex-specific marketplace and plugin commands. |
| Claude Cowork | Yes | Cloud trace verification gap reported | Confirm that a truly fresh-context reviewer can be demonstrated in your workspace. |
| ChatGPT | Yes | Cloud trace verification gap reported | Follow the current archive or workspace import UI and treat isolation as a separate verification task. |
“Working installation” means the host can load the plugin through a documented path. It does not mean every host offers identical traceability, reviewer isolation, or end-to-end evidence.
Is EGM a replacement for human design or code review?
No. EGM is a structured aid for specification-driven development. Its reviewers can expose ambiguity, overlooked cases, and insufficient implementation detail, but people must decide which findings matter and whether the approved design is suitable.
After implementation, retain normal peer review, automated testing, security checks, release controls, and operational monitoring. EGM improves the hand-off from idea to implementation; it does not make those controls unnecessary.
What should I verify before declaring the setup complete?
- The complete plugin package is installed, not just the
skills/directory. - The host-specific command or UI path completed without an error.
- A fresh session recognizes
/egm-brainstorm,/egm-draft, and/egm-review. - A test brainstorm creates a brief and a draft creates a design document in the expected project location.
- The review output contains comprehension, antagonistic, and implementation-readiness findings.
- You know whether your host provides evidence that the reviewer had isolated context.
- A human has approved the design before implementation begins.
- Your ordinary code-review, testing, security, and release processes remain in place.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can EGM review an existing pull request or generated code diff?
Its documented Goldfish workflow reviews the design specification that precedes implementation. You can use the resulting design alongside a normal pull-request review, but the plugin is not documented as a general diff-review service.
Where are EGM design documents normally stored?
The workflow typically places living design documents under docs/designs/. A project can organize documentation differently if the host and team conventions support that, but reviewers must be able to read the selected document.
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No release pin was established in the documented installation material used here. Use the current host and project instructions, and record the installed revision in your own change log if reproducibility is important.
What license does the Elephant-Goldfish Model use?
The project states that Apache 2.0 applies. It also notes that the project is not an officially supported Google product, so organizational support and liability policies should be evaluated separately.
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