VS Code's Agent Host Protocol Explained with Connor Peet

Connor Peet walks through the motivation and design of VS Code’s Agent Host Protocol (AHP), and how it enables more flexible agent sessions and richer orchestration across different clients.

Overview

VS Code’s Agent Host Protocol is presented as a shift from local, window-bound agents to a more flexible model where agent sessions can:

• Stay alive beyond a single VS Code window
• Sync state across machines
• Support remote and long-running workflows
• Enable multi-client experiences (multiple clients interacting with the same session)
• Provide a foundation for richer orchestration and custom tooling built on top of VS Code’s agent ecosystem

Links

• Agents window documentation: https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/copilot/agents/agents-window?source=podcast
• Agent Host Protocol spec/site: https://microsoft.github.io/agent-host-protocol/

Video chapters

• 00:00 Opening and Connor’s Background
• 03:03 From MCP to Agent Sessions
• 10:47 Why Agent Host Protocol
• 17:33 Host vs Client Protocols
• 24:11 Orchestration and Future Agents