{"slug": "github-copilot-in-visual-studio-may-update", "title": "GitHub Copilot in Visual Studio — May update", "summary": "Microsoft released the May 2026 update for GitHub Copilot in Visual Studio 2026, introducing a Plan agent that collaborates with developers on implementation plans before code is written. The update also adds a Skills panel for managing agent capabilities, a multi-file summary diff view for reviewing Copilot changes, and a context window usage indicator. These features aim to streamline planning, reviewing, and managing development work within the IDE.", "body_md": "# GitHub Copilot in Visual Studio — May update\n\nMay 2026 brought sharper tooling for planning, reviewing, and managing your work with GitHub Copilot in Visual Studio 2026.\n\n[Highlights](#highlights)\n\nHere’s what’s new for all GitHub Copilot users in Visual Studio 2026. Check the Insiders channel for the latest:\n\n**Plan before you build with the Plan agent**: The new** Plan agent**(labeled** Plan**in the agent picker) lets you collaborate with Copilot on an implementation plan before any code is written. Copilot explores your codebase with read-only tools, asks clarifying questions, and drafts a detailed plan saved as a markdown file at`.copilot/plans/plan-{title}.md`\n\n. When you’re ready, click**Implement plan** to hand it off to**Agent** mode.**View and manage agent skills**: A new** Skills**panel in the chat window lists every agent skill discovered from your workspace and user profile. You can edit a skill, open its file location, or search across skills by name or keyword, all from a single place.**Multi-file summary diff for Copilot changes**: After Copilot edits multiple files, click** Open change summary view**in the working set to see all changes in one tab. Accept or undo at the all-files, per-file, or per-chunk level, with controls to collapse files or step through diff chunks.**Manage context window usage**: A new ring icon at the top right of the Copilot Chat prompt shows how much of the context window you’ve used. Click to see a detailed breakdown and use**Summarize conversation** to compact earlier turns and free up space.**Add commit to Copilot Chat**: Right-click a commit in** Git History**,** File History**, or the** Annotate (Blame)**view and attach it directly as context in Copilot Chat. Multi-select is supported, so you can attach several commits at once.**Commit message instructions moved**: Commit message custom instructions now live in your repository’s Copilot custom instructions file instead of the old** GitHub > Copilot > Source Control Integration**setting, keeping all Copilot guidance in one place.** Improved optimizations for iterative C++ builds**: When**@BuildPerfCpp** detects a regression in full rebuild analysis, it now reruns a comparable incremental build. This better reflects the day-to-day gains from optimizations such as precompiled headers and header refactoring, which can look slower in rebuilds.\n\n[Download Visual Studio 2026](https://visualstudio.microsoft.com/downloads) to experience all the new Copilot features today. To learn more about what’s new, check out the [Visual Studio blog](https://devblogs.microsoft.com/visualstudio/visual-studio-may-update-plan-review-refine) and [release notes](https://learn.microsoft.com/visualstudio/releases/2026/release-notes).\n\n[What’s next for Copilot in Visual Studio](#whats-next-for-copilot-in-visual-studio)\n\nStay up to date on the latest Copilot features by following the [Visual Studio blog](https://devblogs.microsoft.com/visualstudio), where you’ll find roadmap updates and opportunities to share feedback.\n\nFor the latest news, release notes, videos, and community conversations, visit the [Visual Studio Hub](https://visualstudio.microsoft.com/hub/), your central resource for all things Visual Studio.", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/github-copilot-in-visual-studio-may-update", "canonical_source": "https://github.blog/changelog/2026-06-04-github-copilot-in-visual-studio-may-update", "published_at": "2026-06-04 15:35:58+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-06-04 16:05:55.298638+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["artificial-intelligence", "ai-tools", "ai-agents", "generative-ai", "ai-products"], "entities": ["GitHub Copilot", "Visual Studio", "GitHub"], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/github-copilot-in-visual-studio-may-update", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/github-copilot-in-visual-studio-may-update.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/github-copilot-in-visual-studio-may-update.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/github-copilot-in-visual-studio-may-update.jsonld"}}