Automate recurring developer tasks with the GitHub Copilot app | Tutorial for beginners
GitHub walks through how to offload recurring developer chores using automations in the GitHub Copilot app, including a daily Dependabot review flow and PR triage summaries.
Overview
The video explains how to set up automations in the GitHub Copilot app to reduce manual work that can otherwise build up as tech debt.
What the video covers
- Why recurring tasks like library updates and pull request triage can become a daily time sink
- What an “automation” is in the GitHub Copilot app
- How to configure an automation:
- Naming the automation
- Choosing triggers (for example, issue-triggered)
- Setting schedules (for example, daily)
- How to write automation prompts in plain English
- How to run automations and review the summaries they produce
- How to start a new session from automation results (handoff from summary to deeper work)
- How to review automation history
Example scenario highlighted
- A daily Dependabot review automation that summarizes open pull requests and helps hand off more complex updates so developers can focus on work that needs human judgment.