Agent Modes

Every conversation in Obvious runs through an agent, a configuration that shapes how your requests are handled. You choose the agent before or during a conversation, and Obvious handles the rest: routing your request with the right settings for the job.

The agent selector

The agent selector is the chip in the chat composer. Select it to see your available agents.

Agent

Agent is the general-purpose agent. It researches, writes, codes, and analyzes across any surface in your workspace, working in parallel where the task allows. For everyday work — creating documents, editing sheets, running queries, building workflows, research — start here.

Autobuild

Autobuild is built for shipping code. It writes specs, plans PRs, monitors CI, and drives changes to merge. Use it when the task is a code change that needs to go from idea to a merged pull request.

Autobuild is rolling out gradually across workspaces. If you don't see it in your agent selector, it isn't enabled for your workspace yet.

Prototyper

Prototyper appears in the agent selector only when it's enabled.

Agents in the picker

If you or your workspace have built agents, saved configurations with their own instructions, tools, and behavior, they show up in the same picker, listed directly by name below the built-in agents: agents you own under Your agents, agents someone has shared with you under Shared with you. If none exist yet, this part of the picker doesn't appear at all.

Choosing an agent

For most work, Agent is the right starting point. It handles the full range of everyday tasks without you needing to think about which specialized agent fits best. Reach for Autobuild specifically when the deliverable is a code change headed to a pull request. If you or your workspace has an agent built for the exact repeatable job in front of you, select it directly from the picker instead.

You can switch agents at any point. Your selection applies to your next message; it doesn't change what's already been sent.