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GitHub Copilot cloud agent can use a Slack conversation to investigate a code task, plan or write changes, and create repository artifacts such as issues and pull requests. The safest way to use it is to specify the repository, branch, goal, boundaries, and desired output—and to keep the conversation focused. GitHub says the entire Slack thread can become decision-making context for the work.

What Copilot can do from Slack

GitHub’s Slack integration provides an entry point to Copilot cloud agent. After you ask the GitHub app to do work, the agent can investigate, plan, write code, and create issues or pull requests. It works asynchronously in a cloud sandbox, then returns a summary and links to the resulting artifacts.

GitHub describes the Slack capability as a public preview and says it requires access to Copilot through a paid plan. Preview availability and controls can change; check GitHub’s current Slack integration documentation and your organization’s policies before relying on it.

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Set up the integration and confirm access

  1. Have a workspace admin install the GitHub integration in Slack. The integration must be available in the workspace where the team will use it.
  2. Connect your GitHub account through the app. If prompted, choose a default repository. A channel can also have a shared default repository, but a direct message cannot have a default repository configured.
  3. Confirm the target repository is allowed. For enterprise repositories, administrators configure which repositories the Slack app may access. Organization or enterprise administrators may also need to enable Copilot cloud agent and cloud sandbox policies.
  4. Check the authorization screen and organizational policy. GitHub’s permissions reference describes Slack access for private conversations with the app, GitHub link previews, slash commands, workspace identity details, and posting as the app. GitHub account scopes include code read access; read access to actions, commit statuses, checks, discussions, issues, metadata, pull requests, and repository projects; write access to actions, issues, deployments, and pull requests; content write access for Copilot-authored pull requests; and workflow read/write access to initiate sessions. Review the current permissions listed by GitHub before authorizing the app.

See GitHub’s setup instructions and authorized-app review guidance for the current setup and authorization details.

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Write a Slack request that defines the task

A clear request gives the agent enough direction to work without treating a broad conversation as a substitute for a task brief. State the repository and branch explicitly when they matter. If you omit them, the channel’s default repository and its default branch are used; there is no direct-message default repository.

Include the desired behavior, constraints, acceptance criteria, and what you want returned. For an ambiguous task, ask for a plan before implementation. You can also ask the agent to report assumptions and link the issue or pull request it creates. This is a practical way to make the request precise, not a formal task format enforced by GitHub.

Example request

In the team’s focused Slack conversation, ask the GitHub app to work in acme/api on main. Describe the behavior to investigate or change, spell out constraints and acceptance criteria, and request a plan first if the scope is uncertain. Specify whether you want an issue or pull request, and ask for assumptions and a link to the artifact in the response.

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Replace those example repository and branch values with the real target. Do not rely on a default when a wrong repository or branch would create risk or waste work.

Choose the conversation carefully: its thread is context

GitHub states in its official documentation: “The entire thread becomes the decision-making context for the artifact.” Messages in the original conversation can therefore shape the work and can be stored in generated artifacts.

If a thread contains unrelated or sensitive discussion, start a focused thread or use a direct message to limit the context. Anyone contributing to the original conversation may affect the information used for the task. Once the Slack Code channel for the session is established, use that channel to steer the session rather than continuing to guide it in the original conversation.

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Direct message or shared conversation?

The two interaction modes differ in attribution, context, and who can initiate repository changes.

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Consideration Direct message Shared channel or group thread
Identity used for actions or artifacts Copilot acts with the linked user’s GitHub permissions. Artifacts such as pull requests are created under the GitHub app identity.
Who can trigger code changes The linked user needs write access to the target repository. The person triggering changes needs write access. Other participants can add context, but that does not give them the trigger’s repository authority.
Conversation context A direct message can help keep the task’s context limited; a default repository cannot be set for a direct message. The conversation’s thread can supply context, so every participant’s contributions may influence the work.
Pull-request review consequence The documented extra approval condition for shared-context pull requests does not apply solely because the request was made in a direct message. If repository rulesets already require at least one approval, GitHub says one additional approval is required because the app-authored pull request is not attributed to a person.

Guests and outside collaborators cannot start or steer a Slack session. Keep the repository’s normal review and merge safeguards in place, including the additional approval when the stated ruleset condition applies.

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Review the result in GitHub, not just in chat

When the agent finishes, use its Slack summary and artifact links as a handoff—not as approval. Review the issue or pull request in GitHub, and use a terminal or editor when the change needs closer inspection. Check that the result matches the requested behavior and constraints, and follow the repository’s ordinary review process before merging.

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How Slack sessions differ from CLI delegation

GitHub documents more than one route to cloud-agent work. Slack starts from conversation context and uses the GitHub app. The documented CLI route uses /delegate to send work to the cloud agent, which creates a branch and draft pull request and continues asynchronously. These descriptions do not establish that both routes share identical settings or behavior.

Use Slack when the team discussion is useful task context and can be scoped appropriately. Use CLI delegation when you want to initiate work from the command line. For the CLI flow’s current details, see GitHub’s documentation on delegating tasks from the CLI.

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