# The Codex feature that works while you sleep

> Source: <https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-codex-feature-that-works-while>
> Published: 2026-05-27 12:03:47+00:00

In this 30-minute episode, I walk through my favorite feature in Codex: the /goal command. I show how Goals transform AI from a turn-based assistant that needs constant ‘what’s next?’ prompting into an autonomous agent that can work for hours on complex, multi-step tasks. I share three real examples: eliminating thousands of Sentry errors, cleaning 3,900 emails down to 68, and organizing hundreds of Linear tasks.

**Listen or watch on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts**

### What you’ll learn:

What Goals are and how they differ from standard prompts

How I used /goal to eliminate hundreds of error logs in my codebase over a five-hour autonomous run

The non-technical use cases that make Goals incredibly powerful: cleaning up 3,900 emails in under four hours and organizing hundreds of project management tasks in Linear

How to write effective /goal prompts with measurable outcomes, verification methods, and constraints

When not to use Goals and what makes a strong versus weak Goal

Why Goals represent a fundamental shift in how we work with AI, from babysitting the model to managing it

### Brought to you by:

** Mercury**—Radically different banking loved by over 300K entrepreneurs

### In this episode, we cover:

([00:00](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wLJl9A2CnA)) Introduction

([01:50](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wLJl9A2CnA&t=110s)) What is /goal and when should you use it?

([02:45](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wLJl9A2CnA&t=165s)) The difference between prompts and Goal-based loops

([04:06](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wLJl9A2CnA&t=246s)) Claire’s first five-hour 45-minute autonomous coding task

([05:05](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wLJl9A2CnA&t=305s)) How to manage a Goal lifecycle: view, pause, resume, and clear

([06:06](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wLJl9A2CnA&t=366s)) How to write strong goals: outcomes vs. outputs

([07:34](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wLJl9A2CnA&t=454s)) The six components of effective Goals

([08:57](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wLJl9A2CnA&t=537s)) Example: Reducing P95 checkout latency with /goal

([09:36](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wLJl9A2CnA&t=576s)) Demo: Using /goal to eliminate Sentry errors in ChatPRD

([13:18](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wLJl9A2CnA&t=798s)) Demo: Burning down Vercel API errors

([17:28](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wLJl9A2CnA&t=1048s)) Non-technical use case: Cleaning 3,900 emails with /goal

([21:24](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wLJl9A2CnA&t=1284s)) Demo: Using /goal to clean up Linear project tasks

([24:41](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wLJl9A2CnA&t=1481s)) When *not* to use /goal

([26:10](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wLJl9A2CnA&t=1570s)) Why /goal changes everything

### Tools referenced:

• Codex: [https://openai.com/codex/](https://openai.com/codex/)

• Sentry: [https://sentry.io/](https://sentry.io/)

• Vercel: [https://vercel.com/](https://vercel.com/)

• Linear: [https://linear.app/](https://linear.app/)

### Other reference:

• OpenAI blog post “Using Goals in Codex”: [https://developers.openai.com/cookbook/examples/codex/using_goals_in_codex](https://developers.openai.com/cookbook/examples/codex/using_goals_in_codex)

### Where to find Claire Vo:

ChatPRD: [https://www.chatprd.ai/](https://www.chatprd.ai/)

Website: [https://clairevo.com/](https://clairevo.com/)

LinkedIn: [https://www.linkedin.com/in/clairevo/](https://www.linkedin.com/in/clairevo/)

Production and marketing by [https://penname.co/](https://penname.co/). For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email [[email protected]](/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection).